The relationship between dealers and academics
August 24 2012
A reader sends in this gem:
I cannot resist -- by pure coincidence I was re-reading this evening one of Iain Pears's lovely mysteries ('The Immaculate Deception'), and on page 52 is this: "Confessing to being a dealer in academic circles is about as respectable as confessing to having academic interests at a gathering of dealers. You get nods of understanding, and brave smiles, but the air of disdain that enters the conversation is quite unmistakable. Neither entirely sympathizes with the other, so the scholar considers dealers to be interested only in money, while dealers hold that academics are vague and inefficient. It is generally quite the other way around, but no matter."
And for those of us who strive to be both, it's sometimes grim looks all round!
