All Hail the PUBLIC Library

[marmar]

from OnTheCommons.org:




All Hail the PUBLIC Library
The public library is a uniquely American creation. Now we have to fight to keep it public..

By David Morris


"The word 'public' has been removed from the name of the Fort Worth Library.
Why? Simply put, to keep up with the times."
-- From the Media release on the rebranding of the Fort Worth Library


Fort Worth, you leave me speechless. You’re certainly correct about one thing. The public library is indeed an institution that has not kept up with the times. But given what has happened to our times, why do you see that as unhealthy? In an age of greed and selfishness, the public library stands as an enduring monument to the values of cooperation and sharing. In an age where global corporations stride the earth, the public library remains firmly rooted in the local community. In an age of widespread cynicism and distrust of government, the 100 percent tax supported public library has virtually unanimous and enthusiastic support.

This is not the time to take the word “public” out of the public library. It is time to put it in capitals.

The public library is a singularly American invention. Europeans had subscription libraries for 100 years before the United States was born. But on a chilly day in April 1833 the good citizens of Peterborough, New Hampshire created a radical new concept—a truly PUBLIC library. All town residents, regardless of income, had the right to freely share the community’s stored knowledge. Their only obligation was to return the information on time and in good condition, allowing others to exercise that same right.

By the 1870s 11 states boasted 188 public libraries. By 1910 all states had them. Today 9,000 central buildings plus about 7500 branches have made public libraries one of the most ubiquitous of all American institutions, exceeding Starbucks and McDonalds. ..............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://onthecommons.org/all-hail-public-library

[FSogol]

1. K & R. n/t

[Blue Owl]

2. K&R

:kick:

[Scuba]

3. A shining example of socialism. I love my Public Library. n/t

[kestrel91316]

4. "On the Commons"? Sounds like commie pinkos to me!!1!!!1!

[CurtEastPoint]

5. JUST came back from mine. Placed a hold on 2 books, they came in, picked'em up and gonna enjoy...

the fruits of my taxes at work.

LOVE THE PUBLIC LIBRARY!!
Thanks, Benjamin Franklin!

[Gormy Cuss]

8. +1

I'll just that every time I go to the public library the place is packed with people. So much for being an anachronism!

[RufusTFirefly]

6. K&R I love libraries, and librarians are my heroes!

Nurses, teachers, and librarians are the people I look up to.

[prairierose]

7. I love my library..I do not think I could ...

live without it. Thank the goddess for socialism and the commons.

[Kind of Blue]

9. KnR!

I loved this song as a kid. It was a commercial at the time for the NYC Public Library. I was just singing it the other day to a much younger kid sister who was extolling the virtues of her public library. Thanks for posting!

Library Song by Jeff Markowitz

There’s a place for you and a place for me,
it’s the local public library.
They have books and things that they lend for free
It’s the latest, it’s the greatest, it’s the library.

Educational, informational,
entertainment that’s sensational.
It’s a way of life, it’s for you and me
It’s the latest, it’s the greatest, it’s the library.

They have histories, they have mysteries
And for mothers, books of recipes
See a movie show, hear a symphony
It’s the latest, it’s the greatest, it’s the library.

[1620rock]

11. I will never again vote "yes" for a library millage....

Library card costs $43.00 per year (next county over).

My county costs $13.00 per year (only two tiny shitty librarys.

I guess libraries are privatized these days..fuck em.

(I did buy the $43.00 card for one year.)

[Kind of Blue]

12. Unbelievable! We've had in the past

3 years at least 3 state of the art libraries built in my county, we voted for it and paid for them, but never anything about charging for cards. Only $2 for lost cards. I'm speechless.

[intheflow]

10. I work for the Denver Public Library.

The city wants us to pull $2.5 million out of our asses, in addition to the $5.5 million they've cut form us over the past 5 years. Now they're talking about closing branches. This is my dream job and I may lose it because fucking Republicans have bankrupt our communities with their incessantly selfish cry to cut taxes. :cry:

[1620rock]

13. Hmm, well maybe that's why some of them are charging for cards now.

:shrug:

[intheflow]

15. You think $5 a card will make up a $2.5 million budget shortfall?

SMH.

[CrispyQ]

22. Books & education are meant for the rich only.

Health care, clean water & safe food, too, these things are for rich people only. That's where all this privatization is leading. Fighting to keep something is easier than fighting to get it back, as we know with healthcare.

Good luck with your job. I love the public library system.

[russspeakeasy]

14. Support your local library. Buy their used books, donate books for their sale.

My local library has cut 15% of their staff and no longer do
inter-library book swaps, except for research. In Florida, our
new gov is beholding only to those who donate to his causes
and has threatened the library's with more cuts. 

[1620rock]

16. Well I wish I could get a card for only five dollars....

At least I can go into the library for free, along with the bums sleeping in the chairs and the kids playing games on the computers.:thumbsdown:

[intheflow]

27. It doesn't cost you anything to get a library card.

Your profile says you're from Lexington, MI. Your public library is the Moore Public Library District. From their website:

Library Cards

All residents of Michigan can receive free library cards. You will need a Michigan Driver's license or Michigan ID with your current address. The Moore Public Library serves all residents of the Village of Lexington and Worth Townships.

Come to the Circulation desk with a valid photo identification (driver's license, passport, state ID) that shows your proof of your residency.

Parents may not obtain cards for their children unless the children are present.

If your library card has been lost or stole, please call the library at [phone]. The fee for a replacement card is $1.00.

Next time do a little research before you hate on your public library.

[Patiod]

23. Absolutely! All used books to the libraries. And donate $$

Books are crazy expensive - $25-$30 , so they need as much as we can give.

I buy books from the $0.50 sale shelf, and then donate them back. Others do as well, because I heard a new librarian ask one of the experienced ones "some of these donated books already have a sale sticker on them - did the boxes get mixed up?" and the other librarian said "no, lots of people buy them, and then donate them back"

My dad is almost deaf and immobile, and large-print books are just about his only entertainment any more. I don't know what I'd do without my local public library - we could never afford the 7-8 large print books he reads every week.

They also offer internet access and lots of computers, and kids flock to them every afternoon after school (The seniors use them in the morning, with help from the patient/saintly librarians)

[intheflow]

28. Erm, please, not ALL used books.

Your library loves donations of books in good condition that might appeal to a wide, contemporary public, or might be worth a lot of money (rare books). But we've had some humdinger donations at my branch. Once we got a copy of the 1947 Denver yellow pages, and often get complete sets of corporate training/sales/motivational books with accompanying VHS/audio cassette tapes. We can't give that kind of item away! Books are regularly donated that are literally falling apart, or are waterlogged. If it didn't sell at your yard sale, we won't be able to sell it, either. :(

Please only donate books in good condition! :hi:

[Patiod]

31. Oh, good point! Nothing I myself wouldn't buy

I've also donated DVDs.

[intheflow]

32. Oooo, we love donated DVDs.

They sell like hotcakes, or, if very popular and in good condition, we sometimes add them to our collection. :thumbsup:

[bertman]

17. Great post, marmar. Thanks. REC. nt

[Bozita]

18. Recommended!

[lumberjack_jeff]

19. Everything about a public library is virtuous. n/t

[druidity33]

20. All Hail Librarians Too! K&R, nt.

:)

[CrispyQ]

21. A kick for libraries!

This is not the time to take the word “public” out of the public library. It is time to put it in capitals.

:applause:

Some of my best childhood memories involved the public library. :)

[snot]

24. I love my public library, too. Just borrowed a rare, out-of-print book that

I couldn't have seen any other way.

[truedelphi]

29. I know the feeling. I am reading an out of print book called "The Octopus" about

The collusion between Big Money and the Railroads, circa turn of the twentieth century. Farmers are getting priced out of the market, and this forces them to take loans from banks so they can afford the railroad fees. They end up with very little money, and several are considering suicide and mob action against the banks. (Funny how the more things change, the more...)

Very interesting book. Without the local library providing this, I wouldn't be able to read it.

[Hepburn]

25. I love my local library.

The clerks are wonderful and I have struck up friendships with most of them. Charming, funny and helpful.

I hit the library at least twice a month and I also donate books, videos, books on CDs, etc., to them.

Love my library! :hi:

[Iwillnevergiveup]

26. Big K&R

for libraries. I'm in there several times a month for me and my dad. He is a VORACIOUS reader and makes recommendations for future purchases. I think the staff has actually come to rely on him.

:blush:

[nxylas]

30. I love libraries

I have to make one correction, though. The article should have read "Europeans had subscription libraries for 300 years before the United States was born." That's my trouble, I read too many books.