Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for August 21, 2017

It would still be better than The Emoji Movie.

Nice whitty remark there, Bernice.

Fay has left the building. :(

I liked economics… xD

$182? That’s cheap! My son’s university Calculus book was $350. University text books have been a racket going back my school days 30 years ago and it still goes on today.

Okay, this still has Luann, so it will be another boring arc. I think this is just the first of the arc where she bumps into Jack and Nils. I am hoping Nils and Bernice resume where they left off at the bowling alley. Just maybe, maybe, Piro shows up. After all, colleges are starting a new year this month, and is this is San Diego, they start in August, and students go to the bookstore to pick up their books. The bookstore usually is accompanied by a cafe and an area with tables and chairs so the gang might bump into each other there.

At least Luann does not have my problem with reading. I sometimes have a sleep disorder. Every time I read book spines while dreaming, I wake up tired.

Fill in whatever humorous remarks you deem markedly aprapo.

I aint joking.

Still not back to Annie Awful? I wonder how long Greg will make us wait.

After I graduated, I went back just for classes to help me in passing my exam for a First Class Federal Communications Commission commercial license. I took the night classes at a local community college. The books cost me much more than the classes did. Passed first time.

That’s what I’d like to know.

Ye CATS!

The “Luann Mentoring Fay,” Story Line has been (WAIT for it) ECLIPSED!

BAR-RUM-PUM!!!

Text books are expensive because the printing runs are small. It costs just as much to set up the presses for a 5,000 run as it does for a 5 million (paper excepted). Thus for small runs, the unit price goes way up. Why we haven’t converted all academic books to eBooks is beyond me.

Hey, for those who question if Luann takes more than the art course with the pompous professori buying Principles of Microeconomics, which by the way is usually the second economics course, Principles 102, after a Principes of Macroeconomcs 101. Of course maybe they don’t get that this particular phase of Luannverse is college age, younger adult one. Millennials at that. Ann Eiffel is a Gen X, and very Gen X I might add with her sarcastic evil, but then her older brother is a rumpled Baby Boomer, whom she is sarcastic at, if you look at it that way. And while we have been on a roller coaster lately don’t worry all these loose ends will tie up…right Greg? Greg? GREG??

I think fundamentals of microeconomics could be a good movie if done right. It could be a bit like “The Big Short.”

Aaaw, hoped for more Fay.

Get the iPod version ;-)

I think Greg must have taken a long weekend. We got two Sunday strips. I was waiting to see Fay in a Ninja costume – giving her a chance to boot some derriere.

Since some posters chose to have a brawl yesterday about abortion, I thought I’d inject some levity on the subject.

In case anyone hasn’t seen it, there’s a movie, Citizen Ruth, that’s a comedy about the politics of the abortion debate. Laura Dern stars as Ruth Stoops – a goofy hooker who gets pregnant for the fifth time, and gets raked over by a judge for burdening the state with her babies and drug use.

She’s thinking about getting an abortion to appease the judge, who’s threatening her with a felony. But a religious family bails her out, and she soon finds herself caught in a tug-of-war between pro- and anti-choice factions.

Burt Reynolds also stars as a national, anti-abortion preacher. Laura Dern’s real-life mother – actress Diane Ladd – does a cameo part as Ruth’s mother. The film stereotypes everyone, and pokes a bit of fun at both sides. The problem eventually resolves in a comical way that doesn’t let either faction get quite what they originally wanted.

But in all honesty, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a funnier movie. If you want to laugh until your sides hurt, consider giving it a try.

Oh… and watch through the credits. There’s a little more audio right at the end.

Since textbooks are overpriced, be sure to read every page of them.

Because, like most of higher education, its a racket.

I had to check my calendar because I actually thought it was Sunday when I read this strip. What happened with Fay? When do we get back to Evil Ann? And WHO STOLE THE DAMN TV????

So I guess the Fay arc’s been dropped like a hot rock. At least this proves Luann’s taking more than the one art class. Maybe now she’ll meet more new people…

RE: Textbooks. When I attended college (A lifetime ago), a Calculus book was about $85.00. tried to see it back at end of semester, but it was no longer in use. Was forced to buy “White House Years” by Kissinger. Neither was that being used again. Astronomy book, ditto.Now, with E-books, you don’t even have the option to keep the book!The way it is now, it is a huge scam: 100 or more A MONTH to “RENT” a book. That’s beyond lunacy. That’s a SCAM!

Seems so ironic (well, sort of)…

-

If you neeed a book about sheep farming, you’re getting fleeced…

Anatomy? It’ll cost you an arm and a leg….

You’ve got Electronic Repair on your mind? You know you’re going to be broke…

And, if it’s Econ you’re taking? Well, at least you’re learning how it works…

I was more than happy to pay for the textbook for my first college Astronomy class; it contained high definition pictures of Jupiter and Saturn from the Voyager 1 & 2 spacecraft fly-bys to that date.

My unhappiest purchase was to be a new edition of a Spanish language textbook. Luckily, I found a copy of the previous edition which had the same information, just in a slightly different lay-out and with fewer pictures of bullfights. Whatever page number that was called for was within one or two pages difference.

The most I’ve spent on a textbook was $320.

And this was in 1990!

too bad she didn’t need “the history of cheese” it sounded like fun.

The Eiffel tie-in will be shortly established. At The Fuse, she will be selling textbooks printed, in English, but for use only in India, Thailand, Malaysia, etc. All copies have the line on the copyright page, “Not for use in the United States.” This is a well established textbook on eBay scam.

The Phoenix Library had a complete set of Shakespeare Survey books. All printed in India. All with the line, “Not for use outside of Asia.”

So, there ya go, all ye “get back to Eiffel” people. A very low probability that I’m right. But anything can happen in a college bookstore. Luann might not even have to pay sales tax.

See what happens in the next few strips.

Ironically, when I took Microeconomics, it was taught by Gene Roddenberry’s brother. I guess we had a slightly better chance than Luann that the subject could be made into a film.

There must be somebody getting rich in the textbook industry. It had gotten bad in the last few decades. A textbook used to cost about 3 times what a best seller did. Now the price is about 10 times the best seller costs. A friend of mine found a book he needed for a class on the internet. A paperback that is only supposed to only be available (in English) in third world countries. Saved a bundle.

At my old school, the school would buy back the textbooks for about 5 dollars. And resell them for $150. So students began selling their old textbooks to other students standing on line outside the bookstore. So the school decided we weren’t allowed to do that. Without giving any reason why we weren’t allowed to do that.

“Counting Steep”

“Five Credit Card Study”

“A Raising In The Sum”

“Some Hike It Lots”

“The Nutty Confessor”

“At Store, With The Alarming Prices"

" You’re Never Too Young For Highway Robbery"

“It’s A Bad, Bad, Bad, Bad Sale, Girl!”

“Don’t Know Where My Tennis Are… But I Found The Racket”

 "You Banked My Saddled ‘Grip’!"

“Water Way To Get Hosed”

“Retro-Grade Exorbitant”

“Couldn’t Find Any Change In The Gouge”

“There’s No Accounting For Books On Taste”

“Extort Reform”

“At A Cost For Words”

or

“Minding Your Squeeze And Dues”

I actually had to spend $182 for a (used) text last semester. Got some small fraction of it back when I sold it back to the campus bookstore.

Lu has just learned a cardinal rule of economics: monopolies can set their own prices without market influences

I notice that after three years (real time), Greg is still reluctant to give Luann’s college a full name. The sign on the door says “Community College Book Store” with plenty of blank space below that. If he had wanted to reveal the college’s name, he could have fit the name on the door.

Greg, Too many unresolved story arcs…. I am still waiting to find out who stole the TV and who broke the front of the vending machine. Please.

Of course many things are different from “the old days”. One gets a subscription to online homework (with grading, assessment, hints) as part of the package. Still, textbooks have outstripped the normal inflation rate.

Last time I went to school, I did the smart thing. I got the ISBN numbers for all the books and then entered those numbers online to find used copies. Also, just because there is a brand-spanking-new addition of a book does not mean that any of the information is different. It just may be in a different order. If there is an assignment in the new edition, photocopy it from someone else’s!

Luann doesn’t go to a real college. She goes to a high school with ashtrays….This is why she takes such non-sensical classes that go on for years at a time…. She’s basically unemployable…which if she were taking a real Economics course she might learn….. Except nothing in this strip has any bearing on current realities….

Wait til you get to advanced mathematics, Luann: You can experience The Joy of Sets

Ooooooo! I hope this doesn’t make Luann ‘Bats’! Sorry. I just couldn’t help myself.

My first semester, Fall 1973, as I recall I paid $45 for four courses. My Pol. Sci. 110 text cost $9.95. The prices I hear of today are totally outrageous, ridiculous, insane, and whatever else is bad. Something needs to be done about it, and I wish I had a solution to offer.

7

This new arc starts off in a very promising way! The books of “Bat Diseases” and “History of Cheese” however, would be less likely for sale at Pitt CC than at Moony U. The Community College curriculum is typically more broad based as many courses are designed for eventual transfer to another school. But, at the CC level, there are often specialized programs as well… but…. it is unlikely to have a specialized Associates Degree program with a course in bat diseases. The “History of Cheese” could be part of a specialized Associates Degree in some sort of agriculture program… but still it is less likely at the associates level.

But, that said, the odd books are minor points. It is nice to see Luann and Bernice doing something together that is scholarly in a fashion. It is nice that Bernice went to Pitt CC with Luann to see the bookstore even though she would not likely be getting any of her own books there. Bernice might be looking to see perhaps if some of the books she needs are also being used at Pitt CC and perhaps looking to see if used books may be cheaper, but again, a minor point.

Other thoughts:

1. The presumption is that Fay had a nice first mentoring with Luann and is now at home.

2. Books for CC and U courses ARE incredibly expensive. But, more booksellers are offering a variety of electronic, rental, and other options that help many students with tight budgets.

3. Unfortunately, with the advent of PowerPoint, there is a growing percentage of students who try to go WITHOUT textbooks for their course, relying on the Professor’s Power Points. This is very unfortunate, albeit understandable for some students (in terms of budget). Almost inevitably, it results in the student earning a lower grade in the course than he/she otherwise would have been capable of earning.

4. In India and in many economically poorer nations, many book sellers market VERY CHEAP versions of textbooks. In my own courses, I have….

I have memories like yours SJSCZUREK. I paid $10.00 per class unit and to almost quote a very OLD bookstore TV ad, “Books Were Cheap”. My heart goes out to people today who are struggling to simply stay in college and NOT declare bankruptcy! If parents want to cover the education of their offspring they need to start saving about 10 years before conception! OK, I’ll step off the soapbox now. Back to Luann Land.

had a handful of instances where a student bought a copy of a textbook on-line, and what they received was a version meant for that particular market (the economically poorer nations market). The book was identical in content, but was made from “newspaper” style paper and was soft cover. The few I have seen…. they were quite workable for the student. In one instance where I had an international student, she brought her textbook that she had while attending University in her home country, and when I asked her the price, it was roughly equivalent to $7.00 US (the newspaper version) compared to $250 for the version available in the US.

Sure, it wouldn’t be blockbuster material, but it could make for a very good independent film. You know… the kind that come out between November and March in a limited release, and get nominated for all the major awards despite no one ever having heard of them.

Great images now in real time:

https://www.nasa.gov

And that will continue for some time

Books required for courses should be free!

The luann gang shouldn’t be shopping for books, they need to stare at the moon taking the sun’s personal space!

JPPuZZlewhiz, in answer to your quustion, ODl was a mispelled OLD

Text books crazy expensive. Plus the publishers pay crap to the authors/contributors. Know from experience !!

Holy crap, and I’ve thought that Swedish textbooks are crazy expensive…

This is why a college student needs his or her parents’ money. Sorry, older readers!

Some might cite “low print runs=high unit prices,” but the truth is textbooks have captive readerships and print runs that equal or surpass those of many “popular” publications such as novels or, worse, books of poetry. It’s hard to see it it as anything other than a racket.

no major change to how we pay for college is likely to occur in our lifetimes. so deal with it, and try to find a way to excel in spite of it.

That’s the way I remember it when I went to college back when. It was the Classes + the Books, always the double hit. I paid for my tuition + Books with a campus job in the computer lab. I worked all year around for four years. No breaks. but came out w/o any debt from college. My parents could not send me to college so I had to get a job or get loans. The loans were killer in size so I went the job route and never looked back.

When I was in grad school, I worked as a graduate assistant and supported my family of three children. My take home pay was $259.65 a month. No child support. We survived because we knew it would get better when I graduated. No huge debt.

What does this have to do with Luann? She deserves every penny she can make as a mentor/coach and as a preschool teacher.

Fundamental Microeconomics? So a Sci-fi/Fantasy flick.

Where I attended (University of Wisconsin – Whitewater) textbook rental was part of tuition. You didn’t need to buy most textbooks. The ones I had to buy occasionally my ROTC scholarship paid for.