I don't know, maybe I'm just an old hair-trigger alarmist prude, but it really irked me when a trip to the Amazon page for Richard Stallman's new book included the following blurb:

Customers who shopped for this item also wear:

• Clean Underwear from Amazon's Eddie Bauer Store
• Ladybug Rain Boots from Amazon's Nordstrom Store
• Suede Headwraps from Amazon's International Male Store
• Cheetah Print Slippers from Amazon's Old Navy Store

Cheetah Print Slippers? They actually sold enough of either (no offense, Richard) to draw a meaningful correllation??? Maybe it's just me, but I find this sort of cross-product sales just a tad non-sequiteur, bordering on offensive, so I wrote to Amazon and CC'd Richard:

To: feedback@amazon.com

OK, I am no marketing genius, but ... it would seem to my naive eye that (a) what someone reads is largely irrelevent to their tastes in clothing (b) these particular choices (other than clean underwear) are not 'typical' of RMS/Lessig fans and (c) to someone unfamiliar with the author, the articles of clothing cited would tend to dissuade them from buying the book.

At the very least, I would think just about any author would be upset to discover they are being exploited to sell underwear. Maybe not, but as someone with a small brain when it comes to marketing, that's my gut reaction ...

I expected a polite customer-service reply like, "dear customer, we were testing something out and it didn't work so we retracted it," but what I got instead really surprised me: Amazon denied that it had happened!

Amazon went so far as to insist I was seeing things! twice!

After I investigated the book ... I was unable to find any reference to the items that you referred to in your previous message. (GaryW)

and when I reminded them that I'd sent the screen capture in my first message:

I have researched and found that our web site dosen't show any information regarding which you wrote about in your previous email. (NikhilM)

well dah-- obviously someone yanked it dontchya think maybe? So I wrote back again, CC'ing other depts (which often gets escalated results ;) and asking if they were perhaps suggesting that I was lying ;)

This is what came back:

Thank you for writing to Amazon.com

I have reviewed our previous correspondence with you, and I offer my sincere apologies for any misunderstandings thus far.

I want to sincerely apologize inconvenience or the disappointment may have caused.

Please know, theses recommendation and features are based on the general purchasing trends at our site and it is not personal recommendation from the Amazon. I apologize if you found these recommendation unsuitable.

Mala G

... which suggests Amazon now admits using Richard Stallman to peddle underwear, and they are actually proud of it! Last I checked, though, they weren't so proud of it to have re-instated the clothing recommendation sections on that page.

I haven't heard from RMS through all this, but if it was my book, I'd at least demand they cross-link to a Victoria's Secret!