Παραθέτω ένα μήνυμα του Senior editor του περιοδικού Astronomy που έστειλε σε ένα Yahoo group σχετικό με εκλείψεις που παρακολουθώ αρκετά χρόνια. Το θεωρώ χρήσιμο για όσους σκοπεύουν να κλείσουν δωμάτια από τώρα: Hi, all. Man, the stories I could tell! Price-gouging is rampant all across our land. Or, wait, is it entrepreneurship? You decide. Here’s one tale: My wife’s boss and her fiancé are traveling from Milwaukee to St. Joseph for the eclipse. They booked a room at Candlewood Suites on August 21, complete with a confirmation number, for $199/night. On Friday, August 26, she received a call from the hotel informing her that her reservation had been canceled and that she was free to re-book the room in a week, but that the rate would be $399/night. My initial reaction was something to the fouler side of: COME ON!!! What’s to prevent these sleazebags from jacking up the price again? And again? Follow-up: My wife related that story at her parents’ house. Her mother, who works at St. Joseph’s largest law firm, checked with several lawyers. They told her that a confirmation acts as a contract and gave her instructions (in legalese) to provide my wife’s boss. I’m pretty confident stating that Candlewood Suites will not get away with this. Final update: Earlier today, I learned that Candlewood Suites is going to honor its previous commitment! Oh, yeah. Still, they sure didn’t come to that conclusion on their own. And here’s a single line from an email a friend sent last nite: Okay, we have reservations in Alliance, Nebraska for the solar eclipse! And our room is only $95… normally. For the eclipse it’s $408. No foolin’. This is gonna get worse. Best wishes, -Michael Michael E. Bakich Senior editor / Photo editor ASTRONOMY magazine 21027 Crossroads Circle Waukesha, WI 53187 262.796.8776 x433 mbakich@Astronomy.com www.stjosepheclipse.com