Why I Read (Even While Writing)

Every once in awhile, I come across advice from a writer to this effect:

Don't read. Don't read while drafting because it will screw up your voice. Don't read in your genre because then you might inadvertently steal. Don't read because you should be writing. Don't read while editing because your heart will be crushed by the superiority of finished prose. Don't read. Don't read. Don't . . . 

My first thought, when I read such statements, is always this: I have a choice?!

I was a reader long...