Library Juice 1:25 - July 22, 1998
Contents: 1. Alert from Chuck0: "Content Advisor: This is War!" 2. News stories appearing in the July 20 American Libraries Online 3. LIS student's comments on her education 4. Steve Bergson's Medical Librarianship FAQ 5. Government Resources on the Internet, from G.Tyburski and C. Pitchon 6. Gary Price's web compilations 7. BILINDEX: A BILINGUAL SPANISH-ENGLISH SUBJECT HEADING LIST 8. New mailing list: BLACK-IP - Black Information Professionals Network 9. Internet Resources Newsletter: July Issue (Free pub. for librarians) 10. Non canonical guides to women's literature 11. RTWI (Round Table on Women's Issues (IFLA)) newsletter No. 11 12. Future Employment Prospects For Librarians: comments in response to OOH 13. Poem: The Burning of the Books: 2000 A.D. 14. Chuck0 tells what the ALA conference was like Quote of the week: "Parts of the internet seem to be down so you can't telnet from some of these terminals." -ALA Conference Internet Cafe facilitator _____________________________________________________________________________ 1. Alert from Chuck0: "Content Advisor: This is War!" Date: Tue, 21 Jul 1998 10:22:20 -0700 Reply-To: srrtac-l[at]ala.org Sender: owner-srrtac-l[at]ala.org From: Chuck0 <chuck[at]tao.ca> To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org> Subject: Content Advisor: This is War! What I feared would happen, has finally come to pass. They are starting to filter us at work, depriving us of our free speech and intellectual property rights. There is a new product that has come out for corporate environments that is even more insidous than filtering products like Cyber Patrol and CyberSitter. It's called ContentAdvisor and I urge that you all check it out: http://www.contentadvisor.com/ What really offends me as a librarian and one who promotes the alternative press, is that they claim they can filter on "alternative publications." From their website: Alternative Publications 10638 [URLS] Any content containing alternative or underground periodicals called zines that are published regularly or irregularly and how about Alternative Lifestyles 6181 [URLS] Any content containing information about bi/gay issues, fetishes, etc. We have to resist this creeping notion that filtering is acceptable in certain settings, be it in the workplace or in a library. I will forward another case which illustrates how absurd this has gotten. It is essential that people who negotiate contracts with their employer, either individually or through a union, demand that they not be subject to filtering software in the workplace. Free speech rights should not be parked at your employer's door. We will not be treated like serfs! Any library that installs this product will be subjected to direct action to remove it. -- Chuck0 http://www.geocities.com/SouthBeach/1672/ _____________________________________________________________________________ 2. News stories appearing in the July 20 American Libraries Online <http://www.ala.org/alonline/> * Jersey City Board Ignores Protests, Votes to Privatize * Seventeen States Join Lawsuit Against Baker & Taylor * E-Rate Subsidies Delayed until Fall * Atlanta-Fulton Trustees Keep Their Jobs--For Now * Bill Bars TIIAP Grants to E-rate Eligible Libraries and Schools * Riverside Renews Outsourcing Contract with LSSI * Arkansas Library Closes after Ceiling Caves in * Michigan House Considers Internet Restrictions * New Jersey, South Carolina Libraries Score More State Support * Delaware Governor Signs Library Technology Act * Court Orders Library Worker Reinstated with Back Pay * NCLIS Director Participates in Senate Forum on Seniors' Internet Use American Libraries' Web site also features the latest "Internet Librarian" columns by Karen Schneider; AL's "Career Leads" job ads; listings of conferences, continuing-education courses, exhibitions, and other events from AL's "Datebook"; and Tables of Contents for the current year. _____________________________________________________________________________ 3. LIS student's comments on her education From: Slak <slak[at]INFOHOUSE.COM> To: Multiple recipients of list LIS-L <LIS-L[at]POSTOFFICE.CSO.UIUC.EDU> Hi, I am new to this list, and have not yet received any posts, so I have taken it upon myself to initiate discussion. I am attending Queens College GLIS, and would like to compare curriculum and attitudes to programs of students from other schools. I am also interested in comparing the MLIS to other vocational masters degrees, in respect to their vocational applicability. I feel that my program is extremely generalist, and only scratches the surface of many issues related to librarianship. I think that this is unfortunate for a masters degree, where speciality should begin to be considered. I wonder if a library education at this level would'nt be more expediently gained through a library apprenticeship. Everything in this country seems to require higher education, and my feeling is that this is all in service of the academic industry. These are just ideas that I entertain. But I would be interested in feedback. Luisa Sabin-Kildiss Aigars Kildiss Luisa Sabin-Kildiss 110 Suffolk Street New York, New York 10002 _____________________________________________________________________________ 4. Steve Bergson's Medical Librarianship FAQ Excellent FAQ on medical librarianship, rich in resources for the student or librarian. http://members.tripod.com/~medlib/mdlbfaq.htm _____________________________________________________________________________ 5. Government Resources on the Internet, from G.Tyburski and C. Pitchon http://www.virtualchase.com/govdoc/index.htm Cindy Pitchon and I would like to announce the makeover of our workshop web site, Government Resources on the Internet. In addition to a new look, the site offers many new links and several new features including: -- a search feature -- a new section on finding presidential information -- a new section on finding documents related to legislative histories Government Resources on the Internet corresponds to a six-hour workshop by the same title. The class and the site help researchers find government documents and information on the Internet. We appreciate all comments and suggestions. Thank you! Genie -- Genie Tyburski PH: 215-864-8151 Research Librarian FX: 215-864-8999 Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll, LLP tyburski[at]virtualchase.com 1735 Market St. Philadelphia, PA 19103 Editor of The Virtual Chase at http://www.virtualchase.com/ _____________________________________________________________________________ 6. Gary Price's web compilations Greetings from D.C. I am a librarian at GW and compile and organize three resources that may prove useful to many of you. What follows is a brief description and a list of recent additions to these compilations. Comments and suggestions are welcome. cheers, gary Gary D. Price, MLIS George Washington University Virginia Campus Library Gelman Library Ashburn, VA and Washington, D.C. gprice[at]gwu.edu 703-729-8235 703-729-8237 (fax) ------------------------------------------------ Direct Search Over 800 specialized search/interactive tools. Remember the "general tools" (Alta Vista, Infoseek, etc.) can not index everything. This compilation is updated frequntly with new additions. http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~gprice/direct.htm Make special note of the "Government (U.S. State & City)" link. Several additions have been made to this collection as well. btw, this page can be contacted directly at: http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~gprice/state.htm Recent additions include: Internal Revenue Service-Exempt Organization Database Nuclear Explosion Database State of Washington Business Records New York Lobby Data Web Based Verb Conjugator Real-Time In Flight Airplane Tracking UNESCO Register of Development Activities ----------------------------- List of Lists Over 300 www accessible business lists. http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~gprice/listof.htm Several new lists have been added recently along with along with updating broken or outdated links. Also a new lower-level page has be created with links to major bestseller lists and new book lists. Other additions include: Forbes Richest People (Woldwide Billionaires) 100 Best Places to Work in IS (Computerworld) Connecticut Top 100 Delinquent Taxpayer Accounts 1998 Washington Post 200 Various WWW Rankings and Statistics (Internet World) ------------- Speech and Transcript Center Links to speeches and testimony from government and business leaders. http://gwis2.circ.gwu.edu/~gprice/speech.htm Recent addtions include: Speeches from- Asian Development Bank Officials Prime Minister Tony Blair Speeches by senior central bankers from around the world _________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ 7. BILINDEX: A BILINGUAL SPANISH-ENGLISH SUBJECT HEADING LIST Floricanto Press is pleased to announce the release in an annual subscription basis of BILINDEX: A BILINGUAL SPANISH-ENGLISH SUBJECT HEADING LIST. SUPPLEMENTS III, IV and V. Bilindex, and its Supplements I-V now is comprised of 30,000 Spanish equivalent headings and cross references. It also includes scope notes, standard subdivisions; cross-references and many other features and of HASSLE FREE: BILINDEX ONLINE: A BILINGUAL SPANISH-ENGLISH SUBJECT HEADING LIST. SUPPLEMENTS I THROUGH V, 1998; 3 diskettes $399.95 + $15 per branch-outlet; after 10 outlets, the fee drops to $ 5.00 per outlet. Subject to copyright license. BILINDEX ONLINE, which includes Supplements I through V, is a text file now available in a Window 95 version in three 3.5 ì high density diskettes in one alphabet. It updates the original BILINDEX headings and cross references published in the original Bilindex. For further information 650 Castro Street, Suite 120-331 Mountain View, California 94041-2055 (415) 552-1879 (415) 793 2662 fax Check our WebSite: www.floricantopress.com e-mail: info[at]floricantopress.com _____________________________________________________________________________ 8. New mailing list: BLACK-IP - Black Information Professionals Network (contributed by Chris Dodge) BLACK-IP, The Black Information Professionals Network, is dedicated to the concerns and interests of Black information professionals -- librarians, archivists, info brokers, etc. -- and others throughout the African Diaspora with an interest in the library/information field. Topics discussed may include concerns of the profession, race and ethnicity in the workplace, resource sharing, combatting white supremacy, education and training, job announcements, programs & exhibit mountings, and general library and information issues. Almost any issue of concern or interest to Black information professionals is appropriate for posting to the list. To subscribe to BLACK-IP send an empty message (nothing in the body) to black-ip-subscribe[at]makelist.com or subscribe via the URL: http://www.findmail.com/lists/black-ip/ Owner: Byron C. Mayes <bcmayes[at]hunter.cuny.edu> or <bcmayes[at]panix.com> Prof. Byron C. Mayes Systems Librarian/Assistant Professor Hunter College of the City University of New York 695 Park Avenue * New York, New York 10021 bcmayes[at]hunter.cuny.edu * 212-772-4168 * Fax: 212-772-5113 _____________________________________________________________________________ 9. Internet Resources Newsletter: July Issue (Free pub. for librarians) Reply-to: R.A.MacLeod[at]hw.ac.uk Priority: normal The July issue of Internet Resources Newsletter, the free Web resource for academics, students, engineers, scientists, and social scientists, is now available on the Web at: http://www.hw.ac.uk/libWWW/irn/irn46/irn46.html (Note! the 'W's in 'libWWW' are in upper case!) Featured in this issue: Over 100 new good quality Web sites New email resources Nice Web site of the month report The Internet in Print (reviews of Internet magazines, etc) Science AlterNETive Searcher The Internet and Higher Education IntraNet Professional New Library World Marketing Intelligence & Planning Network News: BIDS, NISS, BUBL, EEVL, SOSIG, EDINA, Chest, MIDAS, RUDI, OMNI, ELDIS, Netskills, Biz/ed, AHDS Focus on the Arts and Humanities Data Service (AHDS) Recent Internet Books in the Library Book announcement Get a life ! Leisure Time STOP PRESS! - NEW How to find out: Economics guide STOP PRESS!! - NEW Subject Guide to Abstracts and Indexes STOP PRESS!!! - 35 engineering e-journals added to EESE Published by the Internet Resource Centre at Heriot-Watt University Library, and edited by Roddy MacLeod (R.A.MacLeod[at]hw.ac.uk) If you experience any problems when retrieving issues of Internet Resources Newsletter please contact the editor. ------------------------------------------ From NetInLib-Announce - http://www.targetinform.com/netinlib/ ------------------------------------------ _____________________________________________________________________________ 10. Non canonical guides to women's literature The New York Times published recently a list of the hundred best novels of the 20th century in English. The Modern Library (publisher) sponsored the list and a panel of "experts" made the selection. The panel evidently included only one woman and no people of color. Few works by women or people of color were represented. (Few Canadians or Australians appeared either.) Preference was given to books in print for a long time and perhaps that explains the character of the list. The list can be viewed at: http://www.nytimes.com/library/books/072098best-novels-list.html Indignation has flowed on various women's lists and here is a message that offers guides to non-canonical, women's literature. (More than just Wharton, Woolf,etc.) --SH ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Tue, 21 Jul 1998 11:28:00 CST From: Phyllis Holman Weisbard <PWEIS[at]MACC.WISC.EDU> Reply-To: Women's Studies List <WMST-L[at]UMDD.UMD.EDU> To: WMST-L[at]UMDD.UMD.EDU Subject: women's "classics" I am also asked frequently to name the most important, influential, or just plain "good" books by women. If the project under discussion comes to fruition in that mode rather than simply amending a best 100 to include more women, I've got a folder full of articles or citations to contribute where others have come up with their lists along these lines. These could be used for starting points, perhaps, or a review to make sure nothing significant had been missed. Here are some of the lists, list makers, or citations I've got: "Books That Changed Our Lives," in special issue on Lit. & Hist. in WOMEN'S STUDIES QUARTERLY 19 (Fall/Win 91): 8-29. "Building a Bookllist: Telling the Truth About Women's Lives." FEMINIST BOOKSTORE NEWS (Aug. 93): 54-59, 132. 200 top titles recommended by 13 of the bookstores. Criteria: "most current, the most important, the classics, and the bestselling titles." "Feminist Classics of This Wave," MS July/Aug 92, pp. 64-65. "Feminist Canon" on the Feminist Majority website: http://www.feminist.org/research/books4.html "20/20: The 20 Most Influential Women's Books of the last 20 Years." PUBLISHERS WEEKLY May 11, 1992, p. 19 "25 Landmark Feminist Books of the 19th Century," by Madeleine H. Stern and Paulette Rose. AB Nov. 26, 1990: 2097-2109. "Valued Volumes" (picks by Pearl Cleage, Spelman Col. & Laura Wexler, Yale U.) ON THE ISSUES (Spring 1994): 47. Women's National Book Association list of 75 books by women "whose words changed the world" (I've got the version printed in our local newspaper in January 1993) WMST-L message from Jill Morrissey, June 2, 1993 compiling favorite books recommended by list members. Women's Studies/women's issues books chosen by a committee (unnamed) assembled by the Soros Foundation to donate to NGOs in Eastern Europe. Categories: Women's issues, gender studies classics, and advanced gender studies lit. Phyllis Holman Weisbard Univ. of Wisconsin System Women's Studies Librarian pweis[at]macc.wisc.edu ************************************************************************ Phyllis Holman Weisbard University of Wisconsin System Women's Studies Librarian Room 430 Memorial Library, 728 State Street, Madison, WI 53706 http://www.library.wisc.edu/libraries/WomensStudies/ pweis[at]doit.wisc.edu ************************************************************************ _____________________________________________________________________________ 11. RTWI (Round Table on Women's Issues (IFLA)) newsletter No. 11 International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) Email: ifla.hq[at]ifla.nl Round Table on Women's Issues(RTWI) Chair: Marta Terry, Biblioteca Nacional Jose Marti Ave. Independencia y 20 Mayo, Plaza de la Revolucion Havana, Cuba Email: BNJM[at]BINANET.LIB.CU WOMEN AND LIBRARIANSHIP Newsletter of the IFLA ROUND TABLE ON WOMEN'S ISSUES No. 11 (Nov/Dec 1997) Report from Outgoing Chair Robert Wedgeworth completed his second term (six years) as IFLA President. I am also completing six years as Chair or Co-Chair of the RTWI. I wish to thank you for allowing me to serve. RTWI has accomplished quite a great deal, considering the trials and tribulations of a new round table in IFLA. The new leadership is capable and will strengthen RTWI. I wish to give particular thanks to Yoko Taguchi who has edited the round table's semi-annual newsletter. She has been reliable and efficient and a most respected colleague. I also want to recognize Leena Siitonen's contributions as Secretary/Treasurer. IFLA's 63rd conference was held on Copenhagen August 31-September 5, 1997. It was IFLA's largest conference to date, with 2,9776 attendees from 141 countries. RTWI's program theme was "Libraries and Information for Human Development: Women Advancing for the Future Through Life Long Learning". Four papers were presented by Kalpana Dasgupta (India), Zhang Lixin (China), Claudia J. Gallop (USA), and Anne Goulding and Marigold Cleeve (UK) to an audience of over 100. At the Copenhagen conference an Executive Committee was appointed. In the future this committee will be elected. There are almost four hundred librarians from fifty-nine countries on the newsletter's mailing list. Respectfully submitted, Mary Biblo Past Chair New Officers Elected at Copenhagen Conference Marta Terry (Cuba), Chair Isabel Stirling (USA), Secretary Beth Stafford (USA), Newsletter Editor/Information Coordinator Executive Committee Minutes August 30 and September 5, 19977 Chair Mary Biblo welcomed all person interested in RTWI to discuss, contribute, and advance women's issues in librarianship. Minutes of the meetings held in Beijing in 1996 and published in the RTWI Newsletter were approved unanimously. The report of Secretary/Treasurer Leena Siitonen pointed out that membership has grown steadily. After discussion, the committee recommended that RTWI bookkeeping should be done more carefully and be fully documented. RTWI's Web site on IFLANET is available, but more effort should be expended to keep its contents up to date. Marta Terry offered to take the issue of maintaining accurate Web sites to the Professional Board. Yoko Taguchi reported that two issues of the Newsletter have been published annually. She asked members to contribute news, articles, and reports. In addition, assistance in distributing the newsletter is needed. After the Copenhagen meeting, Beth Stafford will edit the newsletter. A group appointed at the first Executive Ctte meeting prepared RTWI Scope and Goals (below), which were approved at the Executive Ctte's second meeting. Members of the working group included Marta Terry, Mary Biblo, Isabel Stirling, Kalpana Dasgupta, Beth Stafford, and Suzanne Hildenbrand, assisted by Marlise Mensink of the IIAV. (See below). RTWI Scope and Goals In response to a charge from IFLA Headquarters, at the Copenhagen conference a working group of RTWI members wrote a description of our scope and goals. At its last meeting during the conference, the Executive Committee approved the following text. Scope: The Round Table on Women's Issues concerns itself extensively with questions and issues that have special relevance for women in the library profession and in the library user community. Further, it develops programs designed to enhance the opportunities and the image of these two groups of women. The RTWI promotes the collections, research, publication and dissemination of information on the status of women in librarianship. Another concern is to identify discrimination in all forms and disparities in resources, programs, and opportunities relating to women in librarianship. The RTWI will collaborate with and support sections, Round Tables, and groups within IFLA interested in these issues. Goals: 1. Provide a forum for discussion of issues concerning women in librarianship. Action: Develop a series of open sessions/workshops at IFLA conference. 2. Provide opportunities for research into the role of women in librarianship and insure its dissemination. Action: Publish the workshop proceedings and research results stimulated by the Round Table's activities. 3. Communicate with groups within librarianship and other information professions that have similar concerns. Action: Establish an IFLA RTWI Webpage providing links to relevant collections and information sources. 4. Promote the inclusion of women's issues in library and information education. 5. Promote awareness of the RTWI within IFLA membership. 6. Encourage collection development and establishment of information services on women's issues worldwide. 7. Promote literacy and life long and distance learning for women. KVINFO, the Danish Center for Information on Women and Gender Studies Members of RTWI visited this library in Copenhagen in its new two-story home, next to the national library. Anne-Marie Erikson, reference librarian, explained the Center's work and its role within the context of the Nordic tradition. The Center is a most impressive enterprise that serves all members of the public in Denmark, from members of Parliament to public school students. RTWI IFLA 1998 Conference At the Copenhagen conference, it was announced that Suzine Har Nicolescu had been appointed as Program Chair for the 1998 conference RTWI program. Later, Beth Stafford volunteered to assist with planning. The theme of the 1998 program will be "On Crossroads of Information and Culture: Women's Roles in a Diverse and Dynamic World". The Executive Committee decided to invite carefully selected speakers present our 1998 program, with a mix of women and men librarians speaking. We will have two to three women speakers talk about their work relating to women's issues. In addition, we will have one or two men present their perceptions in regard to RTWI issues outlined in our scope and goals from the perspectives of concerned men in the library and information profession. IIAV Conference '98 The International Information Centre and Archives for the Women's Movement (IIAV) located in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, is holding an international conference for librarians and document- alists working with materials relevant to women and gender issues. Deliberately timed to link with IFLA's annual conference, the "Know How Conference on the World of Women's Information" will be held in Amsterdam August 22-26, 1998. Only two meetings of such librarians and documentalists have been held previously, one of which was by invitation. Following up on the foundations lain at those conferences, the "Know How" conference will further: 1) develop concrete ways of making women's information available, visible, and accessible 2) connect local sources of women's knowledge to global women's information networks in order to create a sustained and intercultural exchange of information throughout the world. Official registration forms are now available. For full information on the conference, go to the URL or email site. The conference URL on Internet is http://www.iiav.nl Email information is at knowhow[at]iiav.nl Program coordinator for the "Know How Conference", Marlise Mensink, urged RTWI members to be active participants in the IIAV program. Activities of RTWI Members Suzanne Hildenbrand (USA) has written a brief history of the IFLA RTWI for inclusion in the book "Libraries: Global Reach, Local Touch", to be published by the American Library Association (ALA) by mid-1998. The book is being edited by current ALA President (and RTWI member) Barbara Ford and Kathleen McCook (USA). To receive the newsletter or change address, etc., send your name, address, job type, fax and phone numbers, and email address to: Wendy Bartlett, Head, Reader Services Unit, Vienna International Centre Library, Int'l Atomic Energy Agency. Wagrame Strasse 5, P.O. Box 100, A - 1400 Vienna, Austria (Fax: 43-1-2060-29584 or bartlett[at] Please TYPE or PRINT carefully. Women and Librarianship, newsletter of the IFLA Round Table on Women's Issues (RTWI) is published semi-annually. Send articles and news items to Editor: Beth Stafford, University of Illinois, 1408 W. Gregory Dr., Urbana, IL 61801, U.S.A. (Fax:217-333-2214; or email: bstaff[at]uiuc.edu) --------------------------------------------------------------- Beth R. Stafford mail to:bstaff[at]uiuc.edu Women's Studies/WID Librarian Phone: 217-333-7998 University of Illinois Library Fax: 217-333-2214 1408 W. Gregory Drive Urbana, IL 61801 *********************************************************************** * IFLA-L is provided by the International Federation of Library * * Associations and Institutions (IFLA). For further information about * * IFLA activities, including organization or personal affiliate * * information, contact: IFLA[at]ifla.org * * * * URL: www.ifla.org * *********************************************************************** _____________________________________________________________________________ 12. Future Employment Prospects For Librarians >From Patrick O'Halloran: Future Employment Prospects For Librarians: Something To Think About This Summer Question: Why does the Occupation Outlook Handbook have this (see below) to say about the job outlook for Librarians when the U.S. economy has fully recovered from the last recession, and the national unemployment rate is down to levels that most economists believe to be that of almost full employment? Source: http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos068.htm#outlook 1998-99 Occupational Outlook Handbook Librarian Job Outlook Slow employment growth, coupled with an increasing number of MLS graduates will result in more applicants competing for fewer jobs. Applicants for librarian jobs in large cities or suburban areas, where most graduates prefer to work, will face competition; those willing to work in rural areas should have better job prospects. Some job openings for librarians will stem from projected slower-than-average employment growth through the year 2006, reflecting budgetary constraints in school, public, and college and university libraries. Additional job openings will arise from replacement needs over the next decade, as many librarians reach retirement age. In an effort to reduce costs, however, libraries are reluctant to add new positions and may even reduce staff. The increasing use of computerized information storage and retrieval systems may contribute to reduced demand for librarians. Computerized systems make cataloguing easier, and this task can now be handled by library technicians. In addition, many libraries are equipped for users to access library computers directly from their homes or offices. These systems allow users to bypass librarians and conduct research on their own. However, librarians are needed to manage staff, help users develop database searching techniques, address complicated reference requests, and define users' needs. Opportunities will be best for librarians outside traditional settings. Nontraditional library settings include information brokers, private corporations, and consulting firms. Many companies are turning to librarians because of their research and organizational skills, and knowledge of computer databases and library automation systems. Librarians can review the vast amount of information that is available and analyze, evaluate, and organize it according to a company's specific needs. Librarians are also hired by organizations to set up information on the Internet. Librarians working in these settings may be classified as systems analysts, database specialists and trainers, webmasters or web developers, or LAN (localarea network) coordinators. Something to think about and comment on. Respectfully yours, Patrick O'Halloran -======================================================================== pohallor[at]wahoo.sjsu.edu Patrick J. O'Halloran SJSU SLIS Program at CSU Fullerton/Library Assistant OCPL Heritage Park Home Page: http://pw1.netcom.com/~pohallor/index.html Internet Resources for Ireland: http://pw1.netcom.com/~pohallor/ireland/irdex.html -========================================================================= ----- (response from Chris Mays:) One response to this question can be had from the BLS: Library Technicians http://stats.bls.gov/oco/ocos113.htm * Employment is expected to grow faster than average as libraries use technicians to perform some librarian duties in an effort to stretch shrinking budgets. _____________________________________________________________________________ 13. Poem: The Burning of the Books: 2000 A.D. We saw that librarians Came to work in brown whirts. The ALA armbands featured A Microsoft ikon. The shelf for Melville Was gone; in its place A computer terminal; Debs and Whitman were CD-ROMs. Patrons who did not log-in At the 'Reader Stations' Were watched by cameras; Their faces put on a data base. We that lovingly held The rare volumes in the stacks Knew we risked x-ray Bursts from VDTs. The night janitor was our man. He could hear the books Weeping above his creaking Oil mop. In basement-and-garage Workshops we began to forge Cable cutters and slip them In our boots. We made the sign for 'Enoch' when we passed on the street. -------------------------- ALA: American Library Association VDT: Video Display Terminal Enoch: The name of the hammer used by the Luddites ------------------------- By Bill Witherup. Published in _People's Culture_ #42 Editor, Fred Whitehead. Address: Box 5224, Kansas City, KS 66119 _____________________________________________________________________________ 14. Chuck0 tells what the ALA conference was like Date: Wed, 01 Jul 1998 14:20:09 -0700 From: Chuck0 <chuck[at]tao.ca> Subject: Radical Librarian Weekend at ALA Sender: owner-librarians[at]tao.ca Well, I'm pretty much sitting around my office today, uncompressing after a whirlwind weekend spent at ALA and schmoozing with all the radical librarians who came to town. Thank the deity of your choice that a three day weekend is coming up which I can spend sleeping, reading, movie going, and playing with a neglected cat. This may be a long post since so much happened, but I think the people on this list who attended will agree that an ALA conference can be what WE make of it, a chance to network and get our messages out to other people. It was good to see several people there who are on this list, including Kati Roberto from Illinois (http://www.lis.uiuc.edu/~roberto/), Rory Litwin from California (http://www.libr.org/Juice/), Chris Dodge from Minnysota (http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Cafe/7423/radlib.html) and his wife Jan DeSirey (also an MSRRT Newsletter editor), Allison Lewis from Philly, and Julie Herrada from Michigan. I heard that Howard B. was in attendance, but I didn't run into him. I may have run into several other people on this list, but I can't connect some email addresses with names. Whatever. I also got to hang with some new friends like Ann Gruehl, Ken Thompson (http://weber.u.washington.edu/~kthompso/), and Jessamyn West (http://www.jessamyn.com/) from Seattle. Ken and Jessamyn edit the SRRT Newsletter (Social Responsibilities RoundTable). Jessamyn spent alot of time taking pictures for her Tattooed Librarian page. Unfortunately, we were unable to do anything for the Nekkid Librarians page, but we did stage a lesbian kissing scene in front of the Family Research Council, a noted anti-gay think tank. This photo went into the second issue of CogNots, an alternative conference zine published by some creative malcontents that I may or may not have shared beers with. Cognots was distributed at several locations and events at ALA and became a sought ought underground "commodity." The first issue of Cognots had a list of places offering free food during the conference, i.e. receptions, vendor parties, and SLIS reunions. Both issues included plenty of satirical reports on real and imagined ALA sessions ("First Aid & Laundry Care: What's a Library Worker to Do?) and hints about cool things to do in DC (i.e. hang out at the Waffle Shop with the local branch of the Lesbian Avengers. Actually that wasn't in there, but you get my point). I was listed as a visiting "indignitary" who is known as a "excessive poster to ALA listservs" I also discovered on Friday that one of the Cognots staff had been going around to the Internet Cafes in the convention center and changing the default home page to the ALA Disorientation Guide that I posted to my MA Infoshop site (http://burn.ucsd.edu/~mai/ala/index.html). The index page for the Disorientation guide got 600 hits last month, which helped the Anarchist Librarians page get around 700 hits. I think its pretty cool that several hundred librarians checked out the Guide before and during the convention. Thanks to those of you who pulled the Cafe stunt. The Anarchist Beer night happened as planned, although we probably shouldn't be planning beer nights. ;-) About 7-8 people showed up, thanks to a late afternoon surge by the Cognots distaff. I know that there were more people who wanted to come, but got tied up by other plans and by being tired after such a hot day. We should do this again next year in New Orleans and hopefully in a more central location. Several of us managed to attend the Free Peltier rally which happened near the White House on Saturday afternoon. About 400 showed up for that rally. The session "Infoshops and Street Libraries" that was organized by Chris and myself went off REALLY well on Sunday morning. We had 85 people in a standing-room-only audience. The room was really good, well lit, and COOL. The session was TAPED by ALA which is pretty cool--I'm going to buy a copy of the tape and I'll make bootleg copies available. Holler if you want one. The audience also stuck around for most of the session which was a good sign. I saw alot of straight-looking librarians in the audience, so the session audience was not dominated by friends and the usual suspects. We had 5 speakers during the session. Chris Atton from Edinburgh, Scotland got things started with an overview of the infoshop movement. Chris turns out to be a rather funny and witty guy. The Joe Courter talked about and showed slides of the Civic Media Center in Gainesville, Florida. Chantel Guidry talked about her experiences with the Crescent Wrench Infoshop in New Orleans. Many were amused when she listed free skool classes, including one on sewing your own...menstreul pad. Alexis Buss talked about the A-Space, Wooden Shoe and other anarchist activities in Philadelphia, and I finished up with comments about the Mid-Atlantic Infoshop. Brad Sigal from Love and Rage and the old Beehive Infoshop was unable to make it. I was kind of surprised that some of the questions dealt with Internet issues. One person asked me if the MA Infoshop had ever gotten filtered (it was). Afterwards a bunch of us got some lunch after I got us all lost. Chris Atton spoke at several other events during the conference. He's written about Spunk and reviewed several of my web sites, as well as writing about alternative in print from the U.K. perspective. Chris was a discussant at an evening session on social responsibilities around the world (more about this in a minute) and on Monday morning he received the Jackie Eubanks award from the SRRT. He got a cash stipend and a nice plaque with Star Trek font lettering. One of the unusual things about the award session was that the head of the British Library Association was in the audience and he got up and congratulated Chris on his award. I also got a chance to talk with Raimund from Germany who does the International Directory of Progressive Librarians. The theme of ALA this year was "Global reach, local touch," so the ALA SRRT organized a panel discussion with representatives from SRRT-like organizations around the world. There were reps from Bis in Sweden, KRIBIBI in Austria, LIWO in South Africa, and organizations in Germany and the U.K. I later gave the KRIBIBI rep a copy of Practical Anarchy and the Atlantic Anarchist Circle contact guide, so she could give them to the punk rockers she knew. I think it is very important to cultivate solidarity ties with radical librarians around the world. We share many similar concerns. On Monday night the AIP hosted the annual Free Speech Buffet, which is an attempt to get local small presses and zines together with librarians who acquire new materials for libraries. The Buffet was held at the "Washington Home of Stuart Mott" which is this nice house with a courtyard across the street from the Supreme Court. Rumor has it that Mott was from the applesauce Mott family and that he gives money to liberal causes. The ACLU has an office here. The small press turnout was small, but several of you made it to the cool reception. One of the small magazines was "Link" which is a performance art zine from Baltimore. Some guys who put out a co-op arts zine drove ALL THE WAY down from Rochester, NY, but damn if I forget the name of their zine. Afterwards a posse of us went and got some brews. Yesterday, several of us attended a event at the Cato Institute on micropower radio. Two anarchists were on the panel. It was kind of weird eating hor-d'oevres at the reception afterwards with Libertarians and inside Washington types. Oh well. Alexis Buss came down from Philly to be on the infoshop panel organized by Chris Dodge and myself. She brought down the new issue of Practical Anarchy, which has a kick-ass front cover graphic by Johann Humyn Being. (Issues are available from me). A new issue of Charles Willet's "Librarians at Liberty" is available and the new edition of *Alternative Library Literature* by Jim Danky and Sanford Berman has been published by McFarland. It has a cool cartoon cover by Konopacki. I've been talking with Alternatives in Print task force people about workshops for next year's ALA in New Orleans. We are talking about doing a session on erotica in libraries and one on corporate bookstores, which may include Industrial Worker editor Jon Bekken. It was a fun weekend, but now it's time for a veg-out weekend. -- Chuck0 http://www.geocities.com/SouthBeach/1672/ +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= Free Mumia Abu-Jamal and Leonard Peltier http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/4167/ Mid-Atlantic Infoshop http://burn.ucsd.edu/~mai/ Spunk Library http://www.spunk.org/ "All the anarchy you'll ever need, organized neatly and with reassuring authority." -- 1998 Rough Guide to the Internet +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+= ______________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ | | | # # ##### ##### ## ##### # # | | # # # # # # # # # # # # | | # # ##### # # # # # # # | | # # # # ##### ###### ##### # | | # # # # # # # # # # # | | ###### # ##### # # # # # # # | | | | | | # # # # #### ###### | | # # # # # # # | | # # # # # ##### | | # # # # # # | | # # # # # # # # | | #### #### # #### ###### | | | | | | http://www.libr.org/juice/ | | | | Items appearing in Library Juice are copyright-free, | | so feel free to share them with colleagues and friends. | | Library Juice is a free weekly publication edited by | | Rory Litwin. Original senders are credited wherever | | possible; opinions are theirs. Your comments and | | suggestions are welcome. mailto:Juice[at]libr.org | |__________________________________________________________|
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Date: Thursday, October 29, 1998 12:07 PM