I don't know for sure, so I'm not necessarily telling you that you are wrong

You must have missed this part.

You also must have missed the part where I said that several knowledgeable authors that DO know have commented on this very subject.

Nobody wants cheap books like I do. But only an idiot would really think that the lack of paper, one of the most abundant things on our planet, should cut the price of a book by $15-20. If you can't understand that the price of a book is set mostly based on the editorial process, proofreading, royalties, and advances then I guess you are just a lost cause. That reduction in price isn't coming out of the publishing companies pocket, it's coming out of the author's. I guess eventually they'll quit writing and nobody will care about this argument.

"I know that the storage requirements for ebooks are minuscule compared to paper books, and there are no shipping costs."

I look forward to your cost analysis on on what it takes to run a data center vs a warehouse and shipping. You state it with such authority that you simply must have it.

"I know that there are production costs in publishing, but with an ebook, they are a one-time expense"

Great. I don't even know what "production costs" is. Doubtful you do either. I'd hate to go back to the movie example.. but hey, why exactly do you think they sell new movies for $15-30? Is it because it costs $15 to make each disc - or because it costs upwards of $400 million to make, market and distribute a movie. Why is ANY physical media any different? It costs pennies on the dollar to make physical things like books, movies, and cds when it's done on a mass scale. But again, I'm sure you have ample evidence since you didn't bother to include any words like "think" - no you used words like "I KNOW."

What the hell is it about you freaks on this site that can't have a conversation and state your opinion without calling it fact and being arrogant assholes? At least I'm ready to accept the idea that I might be wrong entirely on this, despite having read at least 3 author blogs in the past year stating exactly what I have typed.