Library Juice 3:6 - Library Juice is now a book and a blog

Library Juice 3:6 - February 9, 2000 Contents: 1. Poetry from the card catalog 2. LISnews.com site redesign 3. LibraryHQ.com 4. IFLANET now searchable 5. A new page, Filters and Filtering 6. The Peter Greenaway Library Project 7. Books by Sanford Berman removed from HCL catalog 8. Public Relations and Propaganda 9. Environmental Health information 10. Fiona Hunt's account of the Seattle WTO meeting and its significance 11. ALA Council Resolution on the WTO, from the midwinter 2000 meeting 12. OneWorld Online 13. Message from Martin Vera to the PLG on the arrests in Mexico City 14. Opportunity to Attend the Zimbabwe Book Fair 15. Afro-American Almanac 16. Herbert Schiller dead at 80 17. Backgammon Glossary Quote for the week: "A library is an arsenal of liberty." - Unknown Homepage of the week: Robert Wedgeworth http://www.library.uiuc.edu/faculty/rwedge.htm Library Juice Paper Topics http://www.libr.org/Juice/issues/vol2/LJ_2.40.html#11 ___________________________________________________________________________top 1. Poetry from the card catalog http://www.the-declaration.com/1999/04_08/features/bunn.shtml This is an article about an exhibit by artist David Bunn, who makes poetry out of library catalog cards. I saw some of this work in Seattle last year. It was quite interesting. ___________________________________________________________________________top 2. LISnews.com site redesign Created and maintained by librarians, LISNews.com is a web site devoted to current topics and news in the world of Library and Information Science. We welcome you to participate in the creation of this exciting new Web Site. The newly redesigned site includes the ability to post comments on each story, along with a poll, and improved design. Lisnews.com works hard to bring you summaries of selected news articles of interest to librarians everywhere. Inclusion of articles on our site does not imply endorsement by any other sites. We select items and stories that we hope will stimulate ideas and conversation in the interest of keeping you and your colleagues informed. As a home for your creative instincts, we hope to give voice to your own intellectual visions. All ideas are open for discussion. It will be your insight and creativity that helps further LISNews. All submissions will remain under complete control and copyright of the author. Thanks again for considering LISNews.com, You can reach us at: lisnews[at]lisnews.com, http://www.lisnews.com ___________________________________________________________________________top 3. LibraryHQ.com, "resources for the wired librarian" http://www.libraryhq.com You might as well check out this new website for librarians. Unlike most sites for librarians, it is purple and black in color. It does seems useful, yet perhaps not more useful or terribly different from sites you already know about, like www.ljdigital.com. Some innovations: a message center that you can log in to, an upcoming review source (would like to know how to feed it reviews), an emphasis on automation, and an invitation to "make LibraryHQ your start page." It seems like a pretty good site, although I didn't examine it too closely. Is another general library-interest site necessary? ___________________________________________________________________________top 4. IFLANET now searchable IFLANET has been enhanced to allow specific parts of the Web site to be searched. On the search page, (www.ifla.org/search/search.htm), it is now possible to restrict searches to: 1) the entire Web site, or 2) all IFLA Conference papers, or 3) IFLA Conference papers by year, or years in combination. For questions and comments on this enhancement, please contact me. Regards, ...Gary Gary Cleveland Programme Officer / IFLANET Manager IFLA UDT Core Programme National Library of Canada Personal mail: gary.cleveland[at]udt.ifla.org IFLANET mail: IFLANET[at]ifla.org IFLANET URL: www.ifla.org Tel: 819.997.7002 Fax: 819.994.6835 ___________________________________________________________________________top 5. A new page, Filters and Filtering, at http://www.ala.org/alaorg/oif/filtersandfiltering.html replaces former page, Intellectual Freedom and the Internet. In addition to links to ALA Policies and Statements on Filtering, there are links to First Amendment Basics International Intellectual Freedom Basics American Library Basics Internet Filtering Statements of State Library Associations International Library Basics w Censorship Basics Internet Basics Internet Use Policies Court Decisions Against Internet Filtering Statements and Papers Opposing Filtering Minors, Libraries, and the Internet ALA Libraries & the Internet Toolkit Especially for Children and Their Parents Pending Internet Legislation News Sources for Information about the Internet, Filters, Filtering, Intellectual Freedom, and the First Amendment Books on the Internet and Intellectual Freedom Other Organizations Opposing Filtering ______________ Don Wood American Library Association Office for Intellectual Freedom 50 East Huron Street Chicago, IL 60611 800-545-2433, ext. 4225 Fax: 312-280-4227 dwood[at]ala.org http://www.ala.org/oif.html ___________________________________________________________________________top 6. The Peter Greenaway Library Project (From Steve Fessenmeier's "Grafitti" column - fesenms[at]hpk220.wvlc.wvnet.edu) Ken Thompson, a new Masters Librarian, graduating from the University of Washington, has created one of the most interesting blends of web and image. He calls it the Peter Greenaway Library Project. Greenaway is a former painter, now filmmaker, who has created some of the most interesting cinematic stories ever. His masterpiece is probably "The Draughtman's Contract", but all of his films have their fans. His most famous is "The Cook, the Thief His Wife & Her Lover" (1989), which has the ultimate "death by book" scene ever filmed. Check it out at http://www.pform.org/ken/assignments/text/ . ___________________________________________________________________________top 7. Books by Sanford Berman removed from HCL catalog Date: Mon, 07 Feb 2000 14:18:00 -0500 From: "Carol Reid" <creid[at]MAIL.NYSED.GOV> To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org> Subject: [SRRTAC-L:4094] Sandy Berman non grata The Hennepin County Library (former home to cataloger/activist Sanford Berman) has seemingly "weeded" all five titles primarily authored by him from their collection in the short time since his forced retirement. These titles are: Joy of cataloging Cataloging special materials: critiques and innovations Subject cataloging: critiques and innovations Woth noting: editorials, letters, essays, an interview and bibliography Prejudices and antipathies: a tract on the LC subject heads concerning people Nine other titles, for which he is listed as editor, contributor, etc. remain in the catalog. Is this an attempt to further purge Sandy and his influence from Hennepin County Library?? Carol Reid New York State Library .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. Date: Mon, 7 Feb 2000 15:25:19 -0500 (EST) From: Frederick W Stoss <fstoss[at]acsu.buffalo.edu> To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org> Subject: [SRRTAC-L:4095] Re: Sandy Berman non grata Carol and others, Thanks, Carol, for posting this news. If it looks like censorhip by removal, smells like censorship by removal, and feels like censorship by removal, it must be... I'd send this on to American Libraries as a news item and see what happens. I'd send this on to Council for action to see if there is any reason why ALA would condone such behavior. Have other libraries culled these titles? Fred .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. Date: Mon, 07 Feb 2000 15:38:46 -0500 From: "Carol Reid" <creid[at]MAIL.NYSED.GOV> To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org> Subject: [SRRTAC-L:4096] Re: Sandy Berman non grata Fred, I agree. It's hard to even conceive of what sort of official, ostensible excuse the HCL administration may be prepared to give. I believe Sandy himself has already penned a letter to the "library press" about it. We are currently trying to confirm the story/glean inside details via someone who is still employed at Hennepin County Library. Carol .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. From: kmccook[at]chuma.cas.usf.edu To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org> Date: Mon, 7 Feb 2000 21:01:52 -0500 Subject: [SRRTAC-L:4098] Re: Follow-up on Berman affair I am editing the May, 2000 issue of American Libraries. The theme will be Poverty with articles by Earl Shorris (Author of New American Blues and the forthcoming Riches for the Poor), Bert & Judy Boyce (on serving rural poor people),Larry Sullivan on serving the imprisoned...the introduction which I will write will include discussion of Sandy's work to get the PPP implemented, Karen Venturella's book. Sandy will never morph into a non- person...his influence has been far too important. Kathleen de la Peña McCook School of Library & Information Science Professor and Librarian University of South Florida, CIS 1040 813-974-9182 Tampa, FL 33620 http://www.cas.usf.edu/lis/faculty/mccook.html kmccook[at]chuma.cas.usf.edu .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. From: "Nick James" <njaj1[at]leicester.ac.uk> To: librarians[at]lists.tao.ca Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 09:09:38 +0100 (BST) Subject: Re: Fwd: Sandy Berman non grata > Is this an attempt to further purge Sandy and his influence from > Hennepin County Library?? Well, if so, they'll have to try a lot harder. Certainly in Britain, we've only ever heard of Hennepin because of Mr Berman. I can't imagine it's that different in N.America - his influence worldwide will continue to be a great deal more significant than any Stalinist inclined managers. Nick James Catalogue Database Manager University of Leicester ___________________________________________________________________________top 8. Public Relations and Propaganda Here are some articles and sites relating to the public relations industry, with a focus on Edward Bernays, one of its founders. The public relations industry in its connection to mainstream media is amazingly powerful and truly insidious. Bernays knew exactly what he was talking about when he wrote, "It is not generally realized to what extent the words and actions of our most influential public men are dictated by shrewd persons operating behind the scenes." _PROPAGANDA_, 1928 "WAR ON TRUTH: The secret battle for the American mind," an interview with John Stauber of PR Watch. http://www.ratical.org/ratville/PRcorrupt.html Chapter 1 of Stuart Ewen's _PR! A Social History of Spin_, "Visiting Edward Bernays" http://www.bway.net/~drstu/chapter.html Good review of Ewen's book in Salon, with an interview: http://www.salon.com/nov96/ewen961111.html Interview with Stuart Ewen in _New Internationalist_ http://www.oneworld.org/ni/issue314/pony.htm Interview with Larry Tye, author of The Father of Spin: Edward L. Bernays & The Birth of Public Relations http://www.booknotes.org/transcripts/50481.htm "Edward L. Bernays, A Retrospective," at The PR Museum http://www.prmuseum.com/1915-1922.html Stay Free! Zine http://metalab.unc.edu/stayfree/ Introduction to _Toxic Sludge is Good for You: Lies, Damn Lies, and the Public Relations Industry_, by John Stauber http://www.ewg.org/pub/home/clear/on_wise/toxic_intro.html Excerpts: http://www.ewg.org/pub/home/clear/on_wise/toxic_excerpt.html Center for Media and Democracy, home of _PR Watch_ http://www.prwatch.org/ and in a postmodern tangent, Hacking Memes, by Stephen Downes http://www.firstmonday.dk/issues/issue4_10/downes/ ___________________________________________________________________________top 9. Environmental Health information Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 17:21:09 -0500 (EST) From: Frederick W Stoss <fstoss[at]acsu.buffalo.edu> To: SRRT Action Council <srrtac-l[at]ala.org> Subject: [SRRTAC-L:4071] Environmental Health Here is the URL to my EH page: http://ublib.buffalo.edu/libraries/units/sel/bio/ehealth.html In there you will find these recommended sites. I *ed the more useful ones. Let me know if need any additional help. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry http://atsdr1.atsdr.cdc.gov:8080/atsdrhome.html * HazDat Database http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/hazdat.html * Public Health Statements http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/HAC/PHA/ Toxicology Information Briefs (Pesticides) http://ace.ace.orst.edu/info/extoxnet/tibs/ghindex.html Center for Health, Environment, and Justice (fomerly the Citizens' Clearinghouse for Hazardous Wastes) Started by Lois Gibbs/Love Canal http://www.essential.org/cchw/ Department of Agriculture http://www.usda.gov/ National Agricultural Library http://www.nalusda.gov/ AGRICOLA AGRICultural OnLine Access (bibliographic database) http://www.nalusda.gov/ag98/ Environmental Protection Agency http://www.epa.gov * Air Toxics Program http://www.epa.gov/oar/airtoxic.html Office of Prevention, Pesticides, and Toxic Substances http://www.epa.gov/internet/oppts/ National Institutes of Health http://www.nih.gov/ National Library of Medicine http://www.nlm.nih.gov/ Search MEDLINE Free http://igm.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/doler?account=++&password=++&datafile=medline Toxicology and Environmental Health Information http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/tehip.htm Toxicology Databases http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/ToxSearch.htm * Chemical Information http://chem.sis.nlm.nih.gov/chemindex.html * ToxNet http://sis.nlm.nih.gov/sis1/ * ToxLine http://igm.nlm.nih.gov/cgi-bin/doler?account=++&password=++&datafile=toxline National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/homepage.html Search NIOSH Databases Free http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/database.html (including the following) * NIOSHTIC Bibliographic Database http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/database.html Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npg/npg.html * RTECS -- Registry of Toxic Effects of Chemical Substances http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/rtecs.html This is the URL to that REALLY REALLY good reference source I mentioned: http://www.apcatalog.com/cgi-bin/AP?ISBN=0127447709&LOCATION=US&FORM=FORM2 Fred ___________________________________________________________________________top 10. Fiona Hunt's account of the Seattle WTO meeting and its significance Sent to the mai-list, which was set up to alert people to the Multilateral Agreement on Investments discussions, which were a precursor to the current WTO meetings. Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 17:55:56 -0800 (PST) From: Fiona Hunt <fionah[at]interchange.ubc.ca> To: MAI list <mai-list[at]interchange.ubc.ca> Subject: Seattle Dear List members, The following is my tardy account of my Seattle experience. My sincere apologies for the delay. I wanted to get it out to you before leaving the country, but have been, as you can imagine, quite busy. It is in two parts: a) what happened at the NGO session of the conference and b) how libraries came out of the week long event. I hope you find it informative and interesting. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me. I'll be out of touch for a while beginning Friday Feb. 4th, but will eventually be online again. I have no idea how long the process will take, but I shouldn't think any more than a couple of weeks. I also have some photographs from the Seattle event. A friend has kindly mounted them on his website and if you're interested, you can view them at http://www.sfu.ca/twentieth-century-ltd/ Click on "home", then on "seattle" (it's at the bottom of the page). It's set up as a slide show, so you need to click on the forward and back buttons to see all the photos. Regards, Fiona ____________________________________________________ The WTO Conference Much talk during the week centred around the need for greater transparency in WTO proceedings, both within the organization, between member states, and between the WTO and those outside the organization, namely the NGO community and the public. Greater transparency means less secrecy, greater equality among the member states, and more discussion and dialogue. An example of the WTO's non-transparent practices includes the infamous "green room" discussions in which a handful of member states - usually the so-called "Quad" nations (Japan, the EU, the US and Canada) - make decisions and hash out agreements, excluding the other members. In the spirit of greater transparency, the WTO put aside an entire day to "dialogue" with NGOs. For the first time in 50 years, NGOs were allowed to apply for accreditation and attend this special conference session. The dialogue began with a 3-hour delay, admittedly out of the WTO's hands, while the police responded to a bomb threat in the conference centre. When the proceedings finally got underway, the NGOs were ushered into the presence of WTO Director-General Mike Moore himself, as well as several other world trade luminaries, including Charlene Barshefsky, the conference host. The virtues of world trade were then extolled by the WTO's panel of speakers. Of the 8 speakers, only one, a representative from the African Trade Union, spoke out strongly against the WTO and the damage its policies are doing in Africa. In the afternoon session, there were 3 further opponents of the WTO's agenda, but by then, the hall was half empty, as weary and frustrated NGO representatives left in disgust. Out of 16 speakers chosen for the occasion, only 4 were critical of the WTO and its policies. At the end of each session, morning and afternoon, there was an opportunity for "discussion" during which NGO representatives would have 3 minutes to deliver comments or ask a question. If the question filled the entire 3 minutes, the NGO representative did not receive an answer. In both the morning and afternoon sessions, not all of the NGOs who had expressed a desire to speak were called on to do so, partly due to the morning's delay, but mostly because not enough time had been allotted. Not surprisingly, a majority of NGO representatives began their comments by denouncing this so-called "dialogue" and expressing their extreme disappointment at so paltry an attempt. Despite the fact that we had not been called on, the Canadian Library Association (CLA) and International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) managed to clear a path to the microphone to make our comments. We were given one minute each. Both representatives expressed alarm at the potential comodification, under the GATS, of library service, a service which does not generate profit but which nevertheless benefits society and is valuable in its own right. The for-profit dissemination of library services would remove any guarantee of equitable access for the public. CLA asked for assurance from the panel that social services like libraries would be protected, but as our alloted one minute had come to an end, we did not receive that assurance. NGO representatives were told that our comments would be recorded and passed on to the WTO delegates. Among those on the official panel who did speak out against the WTO, Vwelinzima Vavi, of the African Trade Union, said that sub-Saharan countries have lower incomes now than they did before entering the WTO. Dr. Mari Pangestu, from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (Indonesia), pointed out that while trade liberalization has the potential to stimulate growth and alleviate poverty, there is only a weak link between the two. Growth in some parts of the world does not necessarily trickle down to other parts. Professor Yash Tandon, Director of the Southern and Eastern African Trade, Information and Negotiations Initiative (SEATINI), Zimbabwe, denounced the WTO as "devoid of human values" and so inadequate that we don't need to kill it; "it is killing itself". Dr. Claude Martin, Director General of the World Wildlife Federation, stated that world trade is contributing to serious environmental destruction and needs to become more ecologically sustainable. He pointed to the importance of Multilateral Environmental Agreements (MEAs) - frequently overruled by the WTO dispute settlement mechanism - in the world trade arena. Lastly, he pointed out that issues of concern over the WTO are not only North-South, but also North-North, as we have seen with recent North-North trade disputes over bovine growth hormone, bananas, etc. How did Libraries Fare? Despite the ultimate failure of the ministers to come up with a working agenda to launch their Millennium Round, libraries may nevertheless still face the danger posed by these talks. A tentative draft of the services agreement was completed and does not look promising for libraries, health care, education and the multitude of other service sectors. The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) To summarize briefly, for those not familiar with this agreement: The GATS, or General Agreement on Trade in Services, was born during the Uruguay Round of trade talks, which ended in 1995. This agreement strives to liberalize trade in service sectors around the world. "Services" includes libraries, museums, archives, educational institutions, and health care services, to mention only a few; in total, there are 160 service sectors. The Seattle ministerial conference hoped to launch a new set of trade talks that would expand the GATS, which is currently more limited in scope, to include all service sectors across all borders. The agreement would apply the concept of national treatment, whereby foreign corporations must be treated the same as or better than national corporations, to services around the world. Under national treatment guidelines, government subsidies could be claimed by private corporations entering the domestic market and offering the same kinds of services as those in the public sector. Hence, hospitals, educational institutions, libraries, and a host of other services currently existing in the public sector could find themselves competing with corporations for government funding. The current wording of the GATS text is ambiguous and many interpret it to mean that any services currently funded by government are automatically exempted from the agreement and therefore, national treatment could not apply to these services. Others worry that the writing is on the wall for the public sector, regardless of this clause. For those interested in a technical discussion of the WTO draft services agreement, please see the footnote below (1). In more general terms, suffice it to say that the draft agreement does not protect any service sectors from trade liberalization. It puts all sectors on the table at once, rather than allowing member states to choose which ones they want included. Exemptions for particular sectors can be requested (ie. these sectors will not be included), but if no exemption is requested, each sector will be open for negotiation. The services agenda was set fairly quickly in Seattle, with little fanfare from the media. It was probably one of the few "successful" components of the conference that we heard nothing about. As there was little disagreement among members, and as there is now a draft agenda from which to work, the GATS negotiations will likely begin on schedule in January 2000. In Conclusion.... The WTO ultimately did not succeed in drawing up an agenda for its three year Millennium Round of trade talks. The Wall Street Journal and the Economist suggest that the WTO did not fail because of the demonstrators, but rather because of disharmony amongst the delegates, who couldn't decide on an agenda for the Seattle meeting, never mind for the next three years. They may be right. One thing the protesters did accomplish, however, was to alert the television-watching and newspaper-reading world that there is such a thing as the WTO and that some people are worried about it. This is a great victory. Before Seattle, the WTO was virtually unknown amongst the general public, and now everyone has heard of it. Some will be curious enough to investigate further. It is from the ranks of these demonstrators-to-be that we will recruit even greater numbers for the next "Seattle". One thing is certain: because of Seattle, protest has been inaugurated as a factor in negotiations around the world, trade-related or otherwise. Footnote: 1. The draft services agenda contains two worrying clauses: - 31 (b) Liberalisation may be achieved through bilateral, plurilateral or multilateral approaches, *based on the request-offer approach and supplemented as necessary by other appropriate negotiating modalities, applied on a horizontal or sectoral basis*. Participants shall submit initial requests or proposals on specific commitments by 15 December 2000. - 31(c) *The negotiations, from which no service sector or mode of supply shall be excluded a priori*, shall aim to promote the interests of all participants and to secure an overall balance of rights and obligations through the liberalisation of services across a broad range of sectors. Special attention shall be given to sectors and modes of supply of interest to developing countries. The text above between * symbols denotes the pertinent sections. Beginning with the highlighted text from section 31(b): *based on the request-offer approach* means, essentially, "bottom up" negotiations, in which member states can decide which sectors they want to include. If a member state does not want to include health care, education, libraries, and any other service sectors, it will be able to hold them back and not introduce them to the negotiations. However, *and supplemented as necessary by other appropriate negotiating modalities, applied on a horizontal or sectoral basis*, is worrisome. "Horizontal negotiating modalities" means that any decision applied to one sector will automatically be applied, "horizontally", to all sectors. The text here is ambiguous. The European Union interprets it to mean that the horizontal application of a particular rule will apply only to those sectors that have been committed by their member states. The US, on the other hand, believes it to mean that a horizontal application of rules will apply across the board to all sectors. The difference between these two interpretations is crucial. When the text states that these "negotiating modalities" will be applied on a horizontal or sectoral basis, it is simply leaving the door open for negotiators to do whatever they feel like. "Horizontal" means "across the board" while "sectoral" means "on a sector by sector basis" signifying that the sector to which the rule will be applied will be specifically identified. Moving on to section 31(c): *from which no service sector or mode of supply shall be excluded a priori*, means that the top-down approach will be used. This statement directly contradicts the promise of a request-offer approach in 31(b). Top-down negotiations mean that everything will be put on the table at once. Member states can ask for exemptions for certain sectors, but it is more difficult to ask for an exemption than it is to decide which sectors (if any) that you want included in an agreement. When explaining the reasoning behind this approach, one trade official said that, "all the boxes on the table will be opened, but some of them may remain empty." This analogy is extremely unsettling. If all of the boxes are on the table and all of them are open, it is surely only a matter of time before the empty ones start filling up. What would have been a better outcome for the public services sector? - bottom-up negotiations - no horizontal negotiating modalities - no suggestion of a top-down approach - accompanied by explicit language leaving no doubt as to interpretation As the text stands, its content is unfavourable and the language is deliberately vague and open-ended, leaving room for a broad range of interpretation and action. ___________________________________________________________________________top 11. ALA Council Resolution on the WTO, from the midwinter 2000 meeting The following was sent to SRRT-AC by Al Kagan: Our original WTO resolution distributed earlier on the listserv was passed by SRRT. Here is the version passed by the ALA Council. It was endorsed by the ALA International Relations Round Table and the ALA International Relations Committee. The IRC amended the 2nd resolved clause giving themselves authority for coalition work. And the IRC added the final resolved clause sending the resolution to IFLA and CLA. In consultation with our SRRT allies on Council, we accepted their amendments in order to get smooth passage of the resolution, and I moved the amendments when introducing the resolution. ------ Resolution on World Trade Organization Policies Affecting Libraries Whereas IFLA and the Canadian Library Association (CLA) have taken very similar strong positions regarding new World Trade Organization (WTO) proposals affecting libraries; And whereas the national delegates to the November 1999 WTO Ministerial Conference in Seattle were unable to proceed due to large-scale protests mobilized by a wide coalition of environmental, labor, religious, professional, and civil society organizations; And whereas ALA sent a delegate to the WTO meeting but had no official position; And whereas the WTO negotiates in secret and excludes popular participation; And whereas the WTO proposals could have dramatic negative effects on publicly supported libraries as explained in the IFLA and CLA position statements; Therefore be it resolved that ALA endorses the IFLA WTO position statement; Be It Further Resolved that ALA will work in coalition with other organizations as identified by the International Relations Committee to protect libraries within the WTO context. Be It Further Resolved that this resolution be communicated to the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) and to the Canadian Library Association (CLA). Moved by Al Kagan, SRRT Councilor Seconded by Mark Rosenzweig, Councilor at Large ___________________________________________________________________________top 12. OneWorld Online http://www.oneworld.net/ This Web site is "a worldwide Internet partnership of 350 NGOs and media organisations, whose mission is to promote sustainable development and human rights by harnessing the democratic potential of the Internet." This searchable site provides a gateway to an enormous amount of information about global development issues for NGOs (Non-Governmental Organizations) and other interested parties. The material (from publications of their partner organizations) can be browsed by topic or by country. Also available in French, Dutch, Italian, and German. - ttk from Librarian's Index to the Internet - http://lii.org ___________________________________________________________________________top 13. Message from Martin Vera to the PLG on the arrests in Mexico City Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2000 01:04:33 -0600 (CST) From: martin vera <mvera69[at]yahoo.com> Subject: Militar occupation in Mexican University To: iskra[at]earthlink.net, plgnet-l[at]listproc.sjsu.edu Dear PLGers, I'm a member from Mexico City and I'm part of the new Mexican Study Circle on Political Librarianship (http://libr.org/PLG/study_circle.html) This message is only to ask for your support and to inform that pseudo-militars occupied the major Mexican University (UNAM)and ended a nine month students strike with repression. This was ordered by President Zedillo with a false sense of the law and cheered by politicians, pseudo human rights officials and mass media comunicators. The repression was not violent, it was without weapons, but the goverment knew how to act: using mass media manipulation and breaking his promise about that the only solution to this problem was going to be through open public dialogue. The result: more than 800 students in jail. ¿why? only to ask for more financial resources to the higher degree education. Only to ask for justice. They didn't have weapons. Only ideas. One of the main occupied Faculties of the Campus was Philosophy where its located the Library School. PLG'ers: this only a call to be aware that in every time, in every country librarians must fight against intolerance and injustice as a result of the this globalized world. We must not let libraries and education are driven only to satisfy market requirements. In other words, don't put libraries in hands of the capitalism. Thanks for your attention. My best regards, (with sad feelings...) Martin Vera If you're interested in reading "official" news about the conflict, see http://www.cnn.com/2000/WORLD/americas/02/06/mexico.universitystri.ap/index.html but don't believe that is says all the truth. ___________________________________________________________________________top 14. Opportunity to Attend the Zimbabwe Book Fair Date: Mon, 07 Feb 2000 14:38:57 -0600 From: "Michael Dowling" <mdowling[at]ala.org> To: ALA International Relations Round Table <alaworld[at]ala1.ala.org> Subject: [ALAWORLD:297] ALA-ZIBF Free Pass Program To the Zimbabwe Book Fair The American Library Association and the Zimbabwe International Book Fair are repeating of their successful joint collaboration to provide support for ALA member librarians to attend the Zimbabwe International Book Fair. The ALA-ZIB FREE PASS Program to ZIBF2000 will provide three days lodging (bed and breakfast) at a five star hotel, or five days at a three star hotel (applicant's preference), and visitor registration at the expense of ZIBF; plus a contribution of $200 towards the cost of airfare. Up to 20 librarians may be able to participate in this program. The 2000 Zimbabwe International Book Fair will take place July 28 - August 5, 2000 in Harare. The theme for this year will be "Celebrating African Books" and the country focus will be Ghana. The deadline to apply for the Free Pass Program is April 15, 2000! For more information on ZIBF2000 and to apply for the FREE PASS Program, contact: DAVID BRINE, ZIBF(UK) P O Box 21303, London WC2E 8PH Tel/Fax +44 (0)171 836 8501 Email: zibf.kingstreet[at]dial.pipex.com or visit the ZIBF website at www.zibf.org or the ALA International Relations office at phone:800-545-2433, ext. 3201 email: intl[at]ala.org or visit the website at http://www.ala.org/work/international ___________________________________________________________________________top 15. Afro-American Almanac http://www.toptags.com/aama/ Subtitled African-American History Resource, this site presents "a historical perspective of a nation, its people, and its cultural evolution." Included are biographies, full-text books, folktales, documents, information about historic events, and trivia games. AFRO-Voices contains the text of commentaries, poetry, and speeches. Included also are related links and resources as well as a newsletter of Issues in the News. - dl from Librarian's Index to the Internet - http://lii.org ___________________________________________________________________________top 16. Herbert Schiller dead at 80 Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 19:48:13 -0500 To: plgnet-l[at]listproc.sjsu.edu From: Mark Rosenzweig <iskra[at]earthlink.net> Subject: Herb Schiller Dead at 80 Herb Schiller, the dean of critical communications studies in the US, died Saturday. A friend of PLG, a contributer to our journal. He was the model of a committed scholar and an inspiration to many of us in PLG. Herb will be missed. Mark Rosenzweig http://www.latimes.com/obituary/20000202/t000010519.html .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 23:54:02 -0500 (EST) From: Mark Hudson <hxmst3+[at]pitt.edu> It was reading Schiller at the outset of my library school experience that, more than anything else, enabled me to find my way through the ideological fog of library education and define my calling as a librarian. Let us continue to struggle, as librarians and activists, for an alternative public sphere within which the critical consciousness and self-organization of the oppressed and excluded global majority can flourish, and urge our fellow librarians to do the same. --Mark .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. Date: Wed, 2 Feb 2000 17:16:07 -0800 (PST) From: Dan Tsang <dtsang[at]sun1.lib.uci.edu> Very sad. His wife, Anita, was a librarian at UC San Diego. Here's the UCSD notice: http://ucsdnews.ucsd.edu/newsrel/general/dschiller_obit.htm Daniel C. Tsang ___________________________________________________________________________top 17. Backgammon Glossary http://www.bkgm.com/glossary.html Browse by alphabetical entries. Submitted by: The List Owner rjtiess[at]warwick.net From ResPool - http://members.tripod.com/~rtiess/respool.htm ___________________________________________________________________________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. 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