I believe WaMu hired a new guy and paid him a shitload shortly before they went under, too... I went into the local Borders a few days after Xmas and it looked as if they were already in the morgue. There used to be a case displaying new releases in the SF section. It was totally gone. The Star Wars/Forgotten Realms/FranchiseFic section appeared to have taken over a full aisle, while original fiction had shrunk to a couple of opposing shelves (much of their previous territory now covered in an explosion of manga). The other departments didn't look much healthier. At the other end of town, Barnes & Noble looked superficially healthier. - MarcL