Library Juice 3:10 - Library Juice is now a book and a blog

Library Juice 3:10 - March 8, 2000 Contents: 1. Anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution 2. The Library Awareness Program of the FBI 3. The First Chapter of Libraries, the First Amendment, and Cyberspace 4. Where have all the "Berman Books" gone: Update 5. Recommendations for implementing ALA's Poor People's Policy 6. Amazon.com: the Cyberdamned 7. "Highlights of NCLIS Meeting on NTIS Closing Proposal" 8. Neither God or Gods: Some Secular & Atheist websites 9. Subject: [long and meaningless] Re: Tone of discussion 10. The Word Spy 11. ObitFinder 12. "Nation's Teens Disappointed By Banned Books" 13. Stephen Landsberger Chinese Propaganda Poster Pages 14. Shakedown Street Branch Library 15. A most dubious censorship case Quote for the week: "Libraries are reservoirs of strength, grace and wit, reminders of order, calm and continuity, lakes of mental energy, neither warm nor cold, light nor dark. The pleasure they give is steady, unorgastic, reliable, deep and long-lasting." -Germaine Greer (1939-____) Australian reformer, author, educator "Daddy, We Hardly Knew You," "Still in Melbourne, January 1987," 1989. Home page of the week: Dr. Kathleen de la Peña McCook http://www.cas.usf.edu/lis/faculty/mccook.html ___________________________________________________________________________top 1. Anniversary of the Bolshevik Revolution >From The Nation: March 8 marks 83 years to the day that the Bolshevik Revolution was consummated in Russia. We've dug up an editorial published in the pages of The Nation from March 22, 1917 analyzing the victory and expressing hope that the Soviet future will be bright. It's currently available at http://www.thenation.com/print/history ___________________________________________________________________________top 2. The Library Awareness Program of the FBI >> >>> "patf" <patf[at]gateway.net> 03/04 4:57 PM >>> >> Hello. >> Is the Library Awareness Program of the FBI still an active program? >>Does anyone have suggestions as to good sources of information about the >>program? I'm sickened and at the same time fascinated by it. >> >> Pat Filemyr Date: Mon, 6 Mar 2000 12:04:20 -0500 To: plgnet-l[at]listproc.sjsu.edu From: Mark Rosenzweig <iskra[at]earthlink.net> Subject: Re: Library Awareness Program The Library Awareness Program was part of a national counter-intelligence effort (also referred to within the FBI as DECAL: Development of Counter-intelligence Awareness among Librarians). It functioned . as far as we can tell, between 1973 and 1976 and then from 1985 on. The FBI attempted to keep this a covert oeration, until it was exposed in 1987, at Columbia University, by Director of Academic Services, Paula Kaufman.The program attempted to enlist librarians in the surveillance of (and reporting on) "suspicious" individuals use of materials in libraries or as they put it "to "alert[ing] those [in the field} of the possibility of members of hostile countries or their agents attempting to gain access to information that could be potentially harmful to our national security." They wanted librarians to act as spies, conduct surveillance, report on individuals to the FBI, and have no hesitation in completely violating the rights of patrons. In New York City, where this program operated most strenuously, such action on the part of librarians was a violation of State law. It is clear from heavily redacted FBI documents , that some librarians in NYC were considered "assets" by the FBI, i.e. they secretly went along with the program. Some library directors and educators defended the program, But the majority of librarians seem to have been opposed, as reflected in the positions of ALA and the IFC, etc. Mark R. ___________________________________________________________________________top 3. The First Chapter of Libraries, the First Amendment, and Cyberspace The first chapter of Libraries, the First Amendment, and Cyberspace, by Robert Peck Chicago: American Library Association, 2000 is online and available as a PDF file at http://www.ala.org/editions/openstacks/insidethecovers/peck.html "Peck*s book has two specific strengths: it is written in language that is clearly understandable, and it is a concise and thoughtful gathering of contemporary legal opinion on a variety of first amendment issues as they might have an impact on libraries. He includes numerous footnotes with citations to cases that will assist not only researchers but lawyers who may represent libraries. " ______________ Don Wood American Library Association Office for Intellectual Freedom dwood[at]ala.org http://www.ala.org/oif.html ___________________________________________________________________________top 4. Where have all the "Berman Books" gone: Update DATE: February 23, 2000 TO: Local/library press, Hennepin County Board of Commissioners, Hennepin County Libary Board, Hennepin County Administrator From: Sanford Berman, Former Head Cataloger, Hennepin County Library SUBJECT: WHERE HAVE ALL THE "BERMAN BOOKS" GONE: UPDATE In late January, I inadvertently discovered that six books either by or about me, all of which *had* been in the Hennepin County Library (HCL) collection, no longer appeared in the HCL online catalog. They had totally vanished, the records almost certainly having been deleted deliberately and systematically. On February 1st, I issued a one-page statement detailing what had apparently happened, citing the six missing books and speculating that the catalog-record obliteration may have been an attempt by HCL management to further - in _Library Journal Digital_'s words - "purge itself completely of former Head Cataloger Sandy Berman...who resigned [in Spring 1997] after a clash with the library's director." Seven days later, I submitted formal Requests for Reconsideration for each of the disappeared volumes. To date, there has been no official communication from HCL management to me regarding this matter, although the Community Relations Manager has been quoted in the press as saying that anyone at any HCL branch could have deleted the records, that the materials do not seem to have been formally recalled or weeded, and that "some of the titles were still physically on the library shelves" (_American Libraries Online_, 2-14-00). My understanding is that copies of at least one title (_Prejudices and Antipathies_) have been located and a catalog record recreated for that work. Additionally, I'm told that all the wayward books have been reordered, although several are out of print and thus unlikely to be replaced. What more do I want? These things: 1. An accounting of exactly which books have been found in the system and which remain physically missing. 2. An unequivocal declaration by the HCL management that this calculated removal of books and catalog records constitutes a despicable act of censorship and clearly violates the Library Bill of Rights. (Even more serious than the physical withdrawal of some works is the indisputable destruction of the catalog records for all six titles, which in effect rendered them inaccessible and unavailable. This is flagrant bibliocide. 3. An explicit and sincere commitment by HCL management to identify and discipline the perpetrators. (To simply claim that "anyone could have done it" is not enough. To be blunt, anyone *could* have done it, but I personally know of *no one* at HCL - outside of several members of top management - who had a possible or plausible motive for doing it. It seems like a logical next step for the very persons who had last year expelled *me* from the system to now expel my words and ideas from the shelves and catalog, expecially since I have been unremitting in the many months since my forced retirement in attempting to secure personal justice: the cancellation of an unjust reprimand and an apology for the mistreatment and abuse inflicted upon me. I have also sought redress for the outright censorship of corrections and additions I submitted - at their request - to the _OCLC Newsletter_. And I have repeatedly asked HCL management to explain how their ostensible guarantee to preserve high cataloging standards and quality squares with the demonstrable deterioration of cataloging at Hennepin County. Finally, I have inquired about the apparently lessened "urgency" to fashion a Cataloging Practices Manual, which had been the stated reason for my sudden and involuntary reassignment last Spring. There has been no response to any of these requests and queries.) 4. Institution of measures at HCL to prevent the recurrence of such an intellectual freedom travesty. Sanford Berman 4400 Morningside Road Edina, MN 55416 612-925-5738 ___________________________________________________________________________top 5. Recommendations for implementing ALA's Poor People's Policy ALA/SRRT's Hunger, Homelessness, and Poverty Task Force is making the following RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ACTION IN IMPLEMENTING ALA'S "LIBRARY SERVICES FOR THE POOR" RESOLUTION (aka ALA's "POOR PEOPLE"S POLICY") "The American Library Association promotes equal access to information for all persons, and recognizes the urgent need to respond to the increasing number of poor children, adults, and families in America." (Poor People's Policy) Actions for Citizens Challenge public policy that adversely affect low-income people; such as, welfare reform, cutting tax credits, reducing food stamps, eliminating benefits to immigrants, reducing health benefits, etc. Join local advocacy groups that work to promote resources being made available to poor people. Promote full, stable, and ongoing funding for existing legislative programs in support of low-income services, and for pro-active library programs that reach beyond traditional service-sites to poor children, adults, and families. Promote the implementation of an expanded federal low-income housing program, national health insurance, full-employment policy; living minimum wage and welfare payments, affordable day care, and programs likely to reduce, if not eliminate, poverty itself. Actions for Library Professionals Related to library services and policies: Examine your library's mission statement. Who is supposed to be served? Are all people welcome" Are all people being served? What are the barriers to people using the library? What steps could be taken to eliminate these barriers? Work to insure people know how library policies are determined and are able to voice their concerns. Evaluate library policies to ensure that the policies do not discriminate based on the ability to pay for access and/or service. Promote the removal of all barriers to library and information services, particularly fees and overdue charges. Ensure the future success of all children by contributing to efforts that insure children know how to read and are encouraged to read. Work with local literacy providers to publicize availability of Adult Basic Education classes, GED, ESL, etc. to help adults improve their literacy skills. Related to Staff Training: Promote training to sensitize library staff to issues affecting poor people and to attitudinal and other barriers that hinder poor people's use of libraries. Promote training opportunities for librarians, in order to teach effective techniques for generating public funding to upgrade library services to poor people. Related to budgets and funding: Promote the incorporation of low-income programs and services into regular library budgets in all types of libraries, rather than the tendency to support these projects solely with "soft money" like private or federal grants. Promote equity in funding adequate library services for poor people in terms of materials, facilities, and equipment. Promote supplemental support for library resources for and about low-income populations by urging local, state, and federal governments, and the private sector, to provide adequate funding. Related to Outreach Services: Ask local community organizations what issues they're working on and how the library can contribute to their work. Promote the determination of output measures through the encouragement of community needs assessments, giving special emphasis to assessing the needs of low-income people and involving both anti-poverty advocates and poor people themselves in such assessments. Have a special area of reports, brochures, and newsletters of local organizations and agencies with addresses, contact names, and purpose of groups so that interested people can get involved. Fund and support outreach services that address community needs such as literacy programs, read-aloud programs, etc. Promote networking and cooperation between libraries and other agencies, organizations, and advocacy groups in order to develop programs and services that effectively reach poor people. Build partnerships with organizations in your community that serve low-income families. Tell those organizations what you have, how the library works, and update them on new materials and services. Promote among library staff the collection of food and clothing donations, volunteering personal time to anti-poverty activities and contributing money to direct-aid organizations. Promoting related efforts concerning minorities and women, since these groups are disproportionately represented among poor people. Compile a database of local community organizations and make it part of your library's web pages and/or online catalog and make this information readily available to patrons who may need it. Sponsor public events (such as forums, speakers, community discussions, presentations by local organizations) so people can understand issues affecting them -- taxes, child care options, job gap, corporate welfare, crime, school services, etc. Related to Public Awareness: Promote increased public awarenessóthrough programs, displays, bibliographies, and publicityóof the importance of poverty-related library resources and services in all segments of society. Promote direct representation of poor people and anti-poverty advocates through appointment to local boards and creation of local advisory committees on service to low-income people, such appointments to include library-paid transportation and stipends. Collect, display, and make readily accessible current and up-to-date information on issues that are being debated such as the wage gap, lack of jobs, lack of child-care, welfare reform, etc. Promote the publication, production, purchase, and ready accessibility of print and non-print materials that honestly address the issues of poverty and homelessness, that deal with poor people in a respectful way, and that are of practical use to low-income patrons. Related to Professional Association activities: Read ALA's "Poor People's Policy" and think about how its recommendations may be implemented in the libraries where you work. Distribute copies of ALA's "Poor People's Policy" to colleagues and initiate a discussion of the Poor People's Policy at the libraries where you work and get your colleagues thinking about and discussing ways it can be implemented. Ask ALA's Washington Office to actively support legislative initiatives that would contribute to reducing, if not eliminating, poverty (e.g. living wage, more low-income housing, etc.). Get involved in the ALA offices working on the issues of library services to the poor such as the Social Responsibility Round Table Task Force on Hunger, Homelessness, and Poverty; or the OLOS subcommittee on the "Poor People's Policy", or various other committees within ALA. Document effective library services aimed at serving poor people and share information about these programs through ALA publications, conference sessions, electronic discussion lists, etc. as well as to groups outside ALA. Encourage library science programs to offer courses on services to poor people. Volunteer to develop and lead creative strategies within ALA and other professional associations that can bring visibility to the issue of libraries services for the poor. ___________________________________________________________________________top 6. Amazon.com: the Cyberdamned Date: Fri, 03 Mar 2000 10:42:54 -0500 From: Chuck0 <chuck[at]tao.ca> To: librarians[at]lists.tao.ca Subject: Amazon.com: The cyberdamned http://www.monde-diplomatique.fr/en/2000/02/04halimi The cyberdamned by SERGE HALIMI It is by no means certain that the "new economy" has given birth to the race of entrepreneurs and workers lauded by writers in (cyber) business journals. It is nice to imagine new men (for they are almost always males), funny, flexible, friendly, easy-going libertarians, almost Bohemians, gathered in a garage or council flat, scribbling a brilliant idea on the back of an old envelope that will boost them from poverty to cyber-billionaire status. And all thanks to money markets that are just as fun-loving, friendly, Epicurean, deregulated and keen to break down class barriers and privileges. Well, maybe. A few weeks ago Management Today looked at the backgrounds of the people behind Britain's 25 top startups. Did they go from rags to riches? Apparently not. About the only thing they had in common was that they came from well-to-do middle class families living in London's Notting Hill" (1), which is not exactly a council estate. As for their employees, they have become the cyber-damned. As yet the expression is unusual, but the reality it describes is much more common. Just turn your browser to Amazon, one of the flagships of the "dot.com" economy. It was incorporated in 1995 and is already worth more than all the major American bookseller chains put together. Its founder Jeff Bezos owns over $4bn. The work of Amazon employees is less lucrative and a great deal less creative. Several hundred, many young, unmarried and well educated, work at the Seattle premises in gigantic landscaped offices split into tiny, shared cubicles. With their head-sets plugged in and their eyes glued to the screen they handle millions of e-mail orders a year. Some managers at Amazon refer to them as "electronic peasants", for when they are on-line with a customer they are not supposed to show off their literary skills. The focus in these modern times is on output: 12 e-mails an hour and the sack for anyone who drops below seven and a half (2). On the phone any conversation exceeding four minutes, in a voice that according to a former employee "is supposed to be loud enough for the customer to hear and quiet enough to keep from distracting cubical mates," earns the guilty party a warning. "It's like Communist China under Mao," explains one of the new economy's production-line workers, "you're constantly being pushed to help the collective. If you fail to do this, you're going against your family. But if this is a family, it belongs on the Jerry Springer show." Such ingratitude in a company that is constantly organising events for its workers - or devotees. Last September, for instance, there was a "Midnight madness" keyboard marathon, humorously announced by an e-mail entitled "You can sleep when you're dead". This irresistible game involved coming to work at night to cope with as man. Richard Howard, a former employee, is dubious about the revolutionary character of social relations in the new economy: "We basically did drone work and had people breathing down our necks all the time. How revolutionary is that? The only difference is that a lot of supervisors had pierced ears and wore leather." (1) See John Davison, "Internet whizzkids backed by rich parents", The Independent, 8 January 2000. (2) See Mark Leibovich, "Service Without a Smile", The Washington Post National Weekly Edition, 13 December 1999. -- << Chuck0 >> Homepage: http://flag.blackened.net/chuck0/home/ Mid-Atlantic Infoshop: http://www.infoshop.org/ Alternative Press Review: http://flag.blackened.net/apr/ Free Leonard Peltier! http://www.freepeltier.org/ "A society is a healthy society only to the degree that it exhibits anarchistic traits." - Jens Bjørneboe ___________________________________________________________________________top 7. "Highlights of NCLIS Meeting on NTIS Closing Proposal" Date: Tue, 07 Mar 2000 09:33:11 -0600 From: "Jack B. King" <jburge42[at]uswest.net> To: Reference and User Services Association List <rusa-l[at]ala1.ala.org> Subject: [RUSA-L:564] NTIS Update This is not a request for action, but it is an update on what is happening to NTIS from the ALA Washington Office. Jack King RUSA Laison to the Legislation Assembly "Highlights of NCLIS Meeting on NTIS Closing Proposal" On February 29, 2000, the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) held its third public meeting on the U.S. Department of Commerce's proposal to close the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) and transfer its functions to the Library of Congress (LC). NCLIS' stated purpose is to serve as a broker for the various stakeholders, provide analysis and basic research on the various options for dealing with NTIS. They also intend to make a report to Congress on March 15. At the meeting, comments were sought in response to the position paper, "Emerging Consensus Position Paper Proposed NTIS Closure and Transfer." The paper was approved by NCLIS on February 17, 2000 for public review and comment; the deadline for comments to be received by NCLIS is Friday, March 10. (To comment, see http://www.nclis.gov/info/ntis/ntis.html) Only about 20 people attended the third meeting. No representatives from Congressional offices or the Commerce Department appeared to be in attendance. Librarians and GPO played prominent roles at the meeting. Acting Chair of NCLIS Martha Gould convened the meeting; Joan Challinor was the other NCLIS commissioner who attended. Also in attendance were NCLIS Executive Director Robert Willard, NCLIS Deputy Director Judith Russell, and NCLIS consultants Woody Horton and Sarah Kadac. John Stevenson, documents coordinator at the University of Delaware and an active GODORT member, represented ALA. Stevenson presented key points in a letter from ALA Committee on Legislation Chair Chadwick Raymond. The letter was drafted with input from the ALA Committee on Legislation and its Government Information Subcommittee along with GODORT and ACRL Sci-Tech Section representatives. The letter is available at http://www.nclis.gov/info/ntis/alaltr.html Attached to the letter was the ALA Council resolution passed at Midwinter Conference 2000. The resolution, "Resolution on No-Fee Permanent Public Access to Scientific and Technical Information (STI)," recommends that NTIS be transferred to the Government Printing Office (GPO) (see http://www.ala.org/washoff/cd002002.html). ALA's letter and resolution argued, in part, that: -- there are economies of scale in transferring NTIS to GPO, given the similar functions and missions of GPO and NTIS; -- making NTIS materials available to the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) broadens public access and serves the public good; and -- the nature of NTIS functions -- to provide government scientific and technical information (STI) -- is inherently a governmental function which should be supported by federal appropriations. Stevenson added that to say that the NCLIS document suggested consensus, whether "emerging" or not, did not reflect ALA's position. Other participants made similar comments about the nature of the "consensus." GPO Superintendent of Documents Francis Buckley indicated that GPO is interested in assuming appropriate NTIS functions and willing to develop a plan that would do so. A spokesperson for the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) said that NARA also wants to continue to be considered as a viable option for receiving the NTIS responsibilities. Miriam Drake, dean and director of libraries at Georgia Institute of Technology (a major NTIS user), spoke about the need for scientists and researchers to have the level of cataloguing and abstracts presently provided by NTIS. She questioned whether GPO cataloging standards will meet those needs and expectations. Also discussed were the different types of users of NTIS services vs. what some describe as the more general public served by GPO. Another speaker used compared NTIS to a "boutique" and GPO to a "Wal-Mart." Advocates for keeping NTIS at the U.S. Department of Commerce also spoke. The head of the union at NTIS, Louisa Day, argued that both NTIS and GPO should and can exist and that Commerce should retain NTIS. Bonnie C. Carroll, a long-time consultant on many government information issues, emphasized the serious changes that will take place in technology in the next couple of years and the need to work toward a vision on these issues. A Software and Information Industry Association representative spoke but had not yet submitted written comments. In general, the comments from the participants supported keeping NTIS at Commerce. Other than ALA and GPO, no one clearly advocated for the NTIS functions to go to GPO. Everyone agreed on two things: that there should be further study on the issue, and steps must be taken to protect NTIS from losing more staff and resources -- leading to a deterioration in services -- while the debate continues in Congress. The NCLIS Web site includes the "Emerging Consensus" position paper, the major materials prepared by NCLIS, and comments and other communications from various stakeholders involved with these discussions, including those filed by ALA (see http://www.nclis.gov/info/ntis/ntis.html). Meeting minutes are also available. After the March 10 comments deadline passes, NCLIS staff indicated they will review them and develop their report to Congress. There is no clear indication of intentions or timeline from Congress on the NTIS debate. Some observers suggest there will be immediate congressional action; others say it may be a slow process. There is some urgency, however. NTIS is losing experienced staff. The Congressional appropriations process soon will need to decide whether to provide funding to close NTIS or to keep it operating as is for an interim period. The ALA Office of Government Relations will make further reports as more becomes available. -- Lynne Bradley" ___________________________________________________________________________top 8. Neither God or Gods. Some Secular & Atheist websites - A Website Briefing. Introduction If freedom of expression means anything, then it must include the right of free speech, & to publish those views. It has always amazed me how people who can talk about the right to religious expression, while ignoring the way in which atheists are discriminated against ! I refer to British Blasphemy act, which is not an isolated piece of oppressive legislation, either in Britain or throughout the world. These websites look at these issues & what campaigns are being done to redress these injustices. There has always been a very strong link between secularism, atheism, socialism, & anarchism. Thus this briefing should be taken as an aspect to the study of radical politics, as well as a guide to some of the most important free speech / freedom of expression campaigns that are currently taking place. Just think of the great Atheists of the past: Tom Paine - Bertrand Russell - Mikhael Bakunin You see my point ..... I hope that this webpage brief review is of some interest & use. ......................... The Websites National Secular Society http://www.secularism.org.uk/ The National Secular Society { N.S.S. }was founded in 1866, & is still going some very good work. The webpage give news & information about the organisation & its work. For example there is information about the N.S.S. submission to the UK governmental commission to consider the future of the House of Lords. In particular it covers the issues concerning present unelected Church of England Bishops membership of the House of Lords, & various proposals for the reform of the house. There are also links to: British Humanist Association Ethical Society Based at Conway Hall, London, the Ethical Society (South Place Ethical Society), which was founded in 1793 GALHA The website for the Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association. Atheism Central for Secondary Schools Humanist Society of Scotland etc, etc ................................. American Atheists http://www.americanatheist.org/ The American Atheists online version of the quarterly magazine of Atheist News and Thought. This is a BIG website with a lot to download upon it. There are also Instructions and Graphics for linking The American Atheist on your web page. ................................. Freethinker http://www.freethinker.co.uk The Freethinker is one of my favourite periodicals, containing as it does a wealth of information & ideas. Founded by G W Foote in 1881, The Freethinker is a British Secular Humanist journal. The periodical also has a very useful list of British Humanist contacts & events. The Freethinker website gives some of the current periodical content, & information as to how one might subscribe to it. ............................................ International Humanist and Ethical Union ( IIEU ) http://www.IHEU.org/ To quote the webpage: ' IHEU was founded in 1952 in Amsterdam and is the only umbrella organisation of Humanist, rationalist, atheist, secularist, ethical culture and agnostic groups around the world. Its Member Organisations range from large membership groups to specialist bodies such as publishers, universities and development agencies.' This webpage contains News, public statements, projects, & other information about the organisation & its member bodies. It also has Links to its members webpages. Most importantly there are periodical details for some 101 Magazine & journals, & 56 Newsletters, & the organisation that publish. The 'Magazines Electronic Mail Directory' contains some 75 Email addresses, This is a very useful listing of alternative literature from throughout the world !!! ........................................... Atheist Outreach http://www.atheistalliance.org/outreach/ This is the webpage presence of the Atheist Alliance, which is an organisation that is based in Minneapolis. This website contains information about the AA periodical, & organisational information. There are a lot of periodical & publications that are also listed upon the site, plus many interesting links, which are really worth while looking at. .............................. After thoughts. In putting this website review together I have looked at a number of other website that are Not listed here. The use of a search engine will come up with many websites that are of very doubtful value, either because of the half-baked ideas that they might put forward, or because they might be considered as of marginal interest. I have only included those websites that are of use to those who wish to find out more information in regards to organisations & periodicals. Martyn Lowe .................. Please feel free to copy, publish, & copy this on. Martyn ___________________________________________________________________________top 9. Subject: [long and meaningless] Re: Tone of discussion -------- Matt - Do you mind if I "publish" your NEWLIB-L post in Library Juice, my web zine? I enjoyed it. I'd like to introduce it by saying it was a response to a thread about listserv rudeness that began with a post asking how to unsubscribe. I thought the whole thing was classic, and your response was entirely appropriate. Rory Litwin Library Juice -------- Hello, "Publish" away. I get Library Juice and enjoy it. I would only add that it was a response to a thread about listserv rudeness where one too many people made the (as Susan Golding nailed it) sanctimonious remark "besides, we are librarians and we would never say this to a patron so we shouldn;t say it to each other." --matt -------- Date: Fri, 03 Mar 2000 17:35:54 -0500 From: Matt Wilcox <matthew.wilcox[at]yale.edu> To: newlib-l[at]usc.edu Subject: [long and meaningless] Re: Tone of discussion I don't know about you all, but I thought we were supposed to be mealy-mouthed and sanctimonious. Isn't that an official ALA position? I mean, hey, even though you are 100% right, telling us to go against official ALA policy is downright rude and we of all people (as librarians or library student or people interested in librarians or library students) should know that we should never be rude because we are so collegial, you know, and we would never do this to a patron and we should, therefore, never do it to each other because we are a profession you know and not just a profession but peacemakers and we are the center of the university you know or at least the library is and/or the center of the citytownboroughsuburbneighborhoodvilla and by the way downwithfiltering and upwithreading and no i am not bitter because i am underpaid or the profession is underpaid or the profession has no clout or because we are so close to blowing it that there might be no profession or at least no profession i would ever want to be a part of because we are a sanctimonious bunch that in oh so many ways lives up to every single goddamn stereotype and even if we don't no one knows or cares because we are so damn nice and let's be honest...those patrons...we love 'em and we want to help them and we know that it is not their job to know how to use the library like we do, but damn, don't you just want to laugh at them or pummel them or run away screaming sometimes? ya, you do. you know you do. or you will. and isn't nice to have a list of other people in the same boat that you can vent to on a friday afternoon on a cool but sunny day the kind day that would be good to go for a hike or for a drive or to go to the city or whatever but you don't because you got to help that poor lovely wonderful reason for your job idiot patron. but you can't harass or pummel or laugh at that patron, because while the administration or city hall or the whatever doesn't hardly know you exist except when they cut your budget will surely know who you are when you tear into that patron. but there is the list. the list. the list of people who should know better because we are information professionals you know and we should no where it is or how to find it and so you fire it off--the comment. and it feels so damn good ;-) damn. venting to a list is wonderful. therapeutic even. give it a shot. the thinskinned who, being librarians, of course, and having dutifully saved the email the list sends you that says to save it so you know how to send commands to the list (i know i have and i even have it dutifully filed away in an emailbox where I save all those beacuase i am as pathetic as anyone), but the thinskinned will sign off and then we, as a bunch of bitter/nonbitter people that love what we do even when we sometimes hate it, will figure out how to save the profession, the world, and even ourselves and perhaps the whales, the rain forests, and things that don't even need saving yet and maybe in the end even help that poor person/user/patron/reader who is overwhelmed with what is out there. So flame away or ignore it or tell me that real librarians should never whine/bitch/moan/whatever to a listserv. or that the list isn't for this or that. that's the beauty of the whole thing, you know. And Susan Golding wherever/whoever you are, thanks for the insightful repsonse that will hopefully move us all beyond discussions about making sure we are acting like librarians are supposed to act (which to be honest, isn't that the root of all problems in libraryland? that we want to make sure we are doing it right or acting right? But that is a topic for another friday.......................) have a good weekend, --matt matthew.wilcox[at]yale.edu ___________________________________________________________________________top 10. The Word Spy - http://www.logophilia.com/WordSpy/ Devoted to recently-coined words and older words now being used in new ways, each day this site presents a new word, its definition, and a citation that shows its use in context. There's often more information on the word's formation as well as a list of related words from the archived database of more than 1,000 terms. Searchable and browsable. From word lover and professional computer books writer, Paul McFedries. -cl From Librarian's Index to the Internet http://lii.org ___________________________________________________________________________top 11. ObitFinder - http://www.legacy.com/ObitFinder.asp More than 200,000 recent obituaries from over 1,200 U.S. newspapers. Search by name, funeral home, state, and/or keyword from text of obituary. How far the back the obituaries go is dependent on the individual newspaper's archives. Ones back to January 1999 have been found. - cl From Librarian's Index to the Internet http://lii.org ___________________________________________________________________________top 12. "Nation's Teens Disappointed By Banned Books" http://www.onion.com/onion3607/banned_books.html Good satire from The Onion. ___________________________________________________________________________top 13. Stephen Landsberger Chinese Propaganda Poster Pages http://www.iisg.nl/~landsberger/ ___________________________________________________________________________top 14. Shakedown Street Branch Library for Deadhead librarians http://www.geocities.com/deadlibrarians/ ___________________________________________________________________________top 15. A most dubious censorship case "St. Petersburg Times is Evil for refusing to inform public about the recent discovery of Nature's 4-Day Time Cube - greatest scientific discovery of humanity… provingTime Cube obscurantism as equal to Forbidden Knowledge, or to a criminal brainwashing of children by the educators." "Demand the Times 893-8111 to print Nature's Time Cube." Gene Ray http://www.timecube.com/ ___________________________________________________________________________top L I B R A R Y J U I C E | http://libr.org/Juice/ | | Library Juice is supported by a voluntary subscription | fee of $10 per year, variable based on ability and | desire to pay. You may send a check payable in US funds | to Rory Litwin, at PO Box 720511, San Jose, CA 95172 | | Original material and added value in Library Juice | is copyright-free; beyond that the publisher makes | no guarantees. Library Juice is a free weekly | publication edited and published by Rory Litwin. | Original senders are credited wherever possible; | opinions are theirs. If you are the author of some | email in Library Juice which you want removed from | the web, please write to me and I will remove it. | | Your comments and suggestions are welcome. | | Rory[at]libr.org This page was created by SimpleText2Html 1.0.3 on 7-Mar-100.