I know, I know…I’m supposed to give my business to local independent record stores. And I do. But when you work downtown just below Dupont Circle, and you need to grab a CD on your lunch break, what choice do you really have besides the Borders Books & Music at 18th & L?

Thus it was with a heavy heart that I went in the other day and saw the three frontmost CD racks standing empty—-and with signs offering the fixtures for free to any taker. Yup, they’re cutting back their selection.

“It’s not just us,” said the clerk working at the information desk that afternoon. “It’s every other store in the country. We go the same direction as the market, and right now the market is sitting at home downloading music off their computers.”

Just because it was inevitable doesn’t make it less of a bummer.