Library Juice 6:10, May 1, 2003
Contents:
1. Links
2. The loss of Iraqi cultural resources: What are our responsibilities?
3. ALA optimism on GATS developments questioned
4. On George Iles' plea for a headquarters for ALA, in 1903
5. Revolution is not an AOL Keyword
6. A Maypole, by Jonathan Swift
7. Amusing Searches
Quote for the week:
The death of democracy is not likely to be an assassination from ambush. It
will be a slow extinction from apathy, indifference, and undernourishment.
-Robert Maynard Hutchins, educator (1899-1977)
Homepage of the week: Tamara Cameron
http://www.parseraisin.com_________________________________________________________________________top
1. Links
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Holt Labor Library's May Day web page
http://www.holtlaborlibrary.org/mayday.html[ From Shannon Sheppard ]
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The Wikipedia entry for May Day
http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/May_Day[ surfed ]
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Bad Human Factors Designs
http://www.baddesigns.com/[ found surfing ]
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Librarians Call for Changes in U.S.A. Patriot Act
http://www.wqad.com/Global/story.asp?s=1253860[ from Don Wood ]
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Of Libraries, Superstores and Lattes [The New York Times]
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/27/nyregion/27COLM.html[ from Library Link of the Day - http://www.tk421.net/librarylink/ ]
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Some Critical Media Voices Face Censorship (Over Iraq: FAIR Media Advisory)
http://www.fair.org/press-releases/iraq-censorship.html[ sought out ]
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Petition in support of a Draft ALA Council Resolution on the Destruction
of Cultural Resources in Iraq (ready for ALA members to sign)
http://libr.org/irtf/resolutions/iraqculture.html[ Tom Twiss ]
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Links re: the destruction of cultural resources in Iraq
http://www.pitt.edu/~ttwiss/irtf/iraq.html#anchor4431[ Tom Twiss ]
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ERIC Continues But Without Clearinghouses [Information Today]
http://www.infotoday.com/newsbreaks/nb030421-1.shtml[ Library Link of the Day - http://www.tk421.net/librarylink/ ]
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Sitelines - formerly a print publication for web searchers, now a blog:
http://www.workingfaster.com/sitelines[ from Rita Vine ]
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Media Democratization By Edward Herman
http://www.dissidentvoice.org/Articles4/Herman_Media-Democracy.htm[ from Seth Sandronsky ]
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Schedule of SRRT Meetings and Programs at ALA/CLA Toronto
http://www.libr.org/SRRT/2003annual.html[ yours truly ]
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"Free speech for librarians? A review of socially responsible librarianship,
1967-1999," by Taralee Alcock, at it's new location on Libr.org:
http://libr.org/rory/Alcock.html[ yours truly ]
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AW, Look What They've Done to Our Links, Ma
Péter's Picks & Pans Online 27(4) July/August, 2003
http://www2.hawaii.edu/~jacso/extra/picks-pans/ALA/aw.htm[ from Librarian.net ]
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Retired Librarian Mourns Decline of Libraries [The Harvard Crimson]
http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=347627[ Library Link of the Day - http://www.tk421.net/librarylink/ ]
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"Friends of the Library," in _Governing_ magazine, not about Friends
groups but about the role of state library agencies, budget cuts, and
the effectiveness of library supporters.
http://www.governing.com/archive/2003/apr/library.txt[ from John Kupersmith ]
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"Curvy Novels" - database listing novels featuring generously
proportioned heroines.
http://www.curvynovels.com/[ Librarians Index to the Internet ]
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ZAPPed: Collecting 'zines' as a document of our times
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/artsentertainment/134683377_hugozines28.html[ from Gary Price ]
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U.S. Regime Change Playing Cards
http://gatt.org/regime/_________________________________________________________________________top
2. The loss of Iraqi cultural resources: What are our responsibilities?
ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline
Volume 12, Number 33
April 17, 2003In This Issue: Iraqi Cultural Heritage Disaster
In an attack on the cultural history of Iraq, looters and arsonists
ransacked and gutted the National Library this week, transforming an the
nation's intellectual legacy into a wasteland of smoldering remains of
books and artifacts dating back thousands of years. In much of the
library, not a single recognizable book or manuscript could be seen
among the ash. Also destroyed was Iraq's principal Islamic library, home
to some of the world's most priceless early Qurans and other scholarly
material pertaining to the Islamic faith.
Except for wooden card catalog drawers and a carved-wood service
counter, which somehow escaped the flames, nothing was left in the
National Library's main wing except its charred walls and ceilings.
Built in 1977, the three-story National Library building housed all
books published in Iraq, including copies of all doctoral theses. It
preserved rare old books on Baghdad and the region, historically
important books on Arabic linguistics, and antique handwritten
manuscripts in Arabic that were gradually being transformed into printed
versions. The Library was known to also house manuscripts from the
Ottoman and Abbasid periods of Middle Eastern history."The American Library Association deplores the catastrophic losses to
Iraq's cultural heritage that have already occurred with the destruction
of the National and Islamic Libraries, and ALA urges coalition forcers
to work with the Iraqi people to protect further damage to Libraries and
other cultural institutions in Iraq," said ALA President Maurice J.
(Mitch) Freedman. "ALA stands ready to work with our sister cultural
organization in Iraq, appropriate agencies, and the Iraqi people, and
calls upon the U.S. government to help re-build and restore these and
other Libraries in Iraq that have been looted and destroyed - helping to
return to the Iraqi people an important part of their cultural history
and legacy," he concluded.Your Help Needed:
If you or someone you know is in contact with Iraqi librarians, please
let us know by contacting Michael Dowling, International Relations
(mdowling[at]ala.org) or Rick Weingarten, ALA OITP
(rweingarten[at]alawash.org). We would like to communicate with
librarians in Iraq in order to find out more information about the
destruction of libraries and other cultural centers in the country.******
ALAWON (ISSN 1069-7799) is a free, irregular publication of the
American Library Association Washington Office. All materials subject to
copyright by the American Library Association may be reprinted or
redistributed for noncommercial purposes with appropriate credits.----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Thu, 17 Apr 2003 14:26:26 -0400
From: "Samuel E. Trosow" <strosow[at]uwo.ca>
To: member-forum[at]ala.org, srrtac-l[at]ala.org
Reply to: strosow[at]uwo.caI'm glad the WO is addressing this issue, as it helps put to rest the
notion that wars are not "library issues." But what's missing from this
statement is any acknowledgement of the role of the United States in
allowing this destruction to happen, not to mention their disgraceful
response (Rumsfeld's "Stuff happens" comment). "Looters and arsonists"
certainly were not able to damage the assets considered important to the
interests of the occupation forces. Is it ok for the US to invade
another country, if only they're more careful about guarding the
libraries post-occupation? It seems as if ALA's failure to take a
principled position on this war continues to unravel itself .Samuel Trosow
University of Western Ontario----------------------------------------------------------------------
[ALACOUN:9383] Iraq National Library Press Release 4-23
Date: Wed, 23 Apr 2003 18:27:01 -0400
From: "Maurice J. (Mitch) Freedman" <freedman[at]wlsmail.org>
To: ALA Council List <alacoun[at]ala1.ala.org>
Cc: NYLINE <NYLINE[at]UNIX10.nysed.gov>
Reply to: freedman[at]wlsmail.orgFollowing is the Press Release which contains the complete ALA statement
"ALA joins international library community in assisting Iraq National
Library." It also is attached as a Word document and a link to it is
provided from the ALA home page.[Release]
ALA joins international library community in assisting Iraq National
LibraryThe American Library Association (ALA) today announced it has begun
working with other members of the Heritage Emergency National Task Force
- which includes the Library of Congress, the Institute for Museum and
Library Services and various cultural organizations - to coordinate with
efforts of the International Federation of Libraries and Institutions
Association (IFLA) and UNESCO to respond to requests for assistance from
colleagues in Iraq to help restore the National Library and Archive,
Iraq's principal Islamic library, and other important centers of
learning in the cradle of civilization."The American Library Association grieves for and deplores the
catastrophic losses to Iraq's cultural heritage that have already
occurred with the destruction of the National Library Archives and the
Islamic library. Cultural heritage is as important as oil. Libraries are
a cornerstone of democracy and are vital resources in the
re-establishment of a civil society. We urge the administration to
ensure that in the future the necessary resources will be made available
to prevent further catastrophes," said ALA President Maurice J. (Mitch)
Freedman."ALA stands ready to work with our sister cultural organizations in
Iraq, appropriate agencies, and the Iraqi people and urges the U.S.
government to help rebuild and restore these and other libraries and
cultural institutions in Iraq that have been looted and destroyed - thus
helping to return to the Iraqi people an important part of their
cultural heritage and legacy," he concluded.The National Library and Archives of Iraq and the principal Islamic
library were destroyed last week by looters and arsonists. Reports
indicated that the libraries were unguarded at the time of their
destruction. Reports also indicate that very little, if any, of the
collections survived. The printed books, manuscripts and archival
records held in these institutions documented the historical and
cultural history of the country. It is clear that a large proportion of
these historical documents were unique and may never be able to be
replaced or duplicated in any form. The National Library and Archives
housed all the books published in Iraq. It preserved rare old books on
Baghdad and the region, important books on Arabic linguistics, and
antique handwritten manuscripts from the Ottoman and Abbasid periods.
The Islamic library was home to some of the world's most priceless early
Qurans and other scholarly material pertaining to the Islamic faith.For more information and updates on activities please visit
http://www.ala.org/iraq.-30-
--
Maurice J. (Mitch) Freedman, MLS, PhD
ALA President
http://www.mjfreedman.org----------------------------------------------------------------------
Response from Mark Rosenzweig:
1)What are the principles involved in the Iraq library issue [for
librarians]?First and foremost, we should affirm the leading role of UNESCO, and
-- secondarily, a few fully international bodies, with the
participation of US bodies only through those international
institutions; ALA should, having not opposed the war, be (explicitly
or implicitly) supporting an end preferably immediate, to military
occupation; opposing completely the imposition of an
American-selected interim government; for the recusal of American
government-connected agencies (e.g. USAID) from re-development in the
area of culture; we should be publicly in favor of and promoting an
end to all intimations that interested major cultural institutions
with their own agendas in the US (e.g LoC or the Met Museum) or
Britain (e.g. British Museum) have any claims on Iraq's antiquities,
art, manuscripts, or books; calling for an international panel --
with leading Iraq representatives involved -- to deal with the issue
of the library and its contents, the US authority's only
responsibility now being the assitance in protection of cultural
heritage sites while we withdraw and perhaps the assistance in
creation of team of locals who can continue to protect it in the
short interim; we should oppose &expose all attempts at 'market
solutions' to the art & manuscripts issues, which are based on the
presumption that they are all dispersed, and cannot be re-collected
and that the US has the right to allow them to enter the
international art market (which is presently illegal) something which
is being vigorously being lobbied for at the White House by the art
sales houses, museums, collectors and dealers who want to snarf up
Iraq's treasures (i.e. by the real looters)Nothing would be more detestable than for the US to seek to
prioritize the building of a new national library by Western forces
in destroyed Baghdad in the midst of the destruction we have
ourselves wrought while the basic problems of existence are
unresolved and governance and administration are still at issue. I
beg you all to have nothing to do with any 'humanitarian' efforts
which prioritize such a project, memorialize the war and occupation,
diminish further the sovereignty of the Iraqi people, or obscure the
actual circumstances of the cultural patrimony of that nation, with a
highly publicized and propagandized construction of a glamorous
national library.
--------------------
2)Here's what I gather are the matters of fact (or not), when I put
all the pieces I have and trust, together (in short form).1)US was given long advance notice by international cultural bodies
of problem posed by museum and library. Ignored it.
2) The US bombed and fired close enough to the library to create
fires and threat of material damage. Damage was done. Further damage
ensued while the facility was being 'guarded' by US troops.
3) US had fought entrenched Iraqi's at library entrance. Damage
possibly done. Certainly, care not taken. All this could have been,
should have been, still can be forensically established or disproved.
4) US military did not assume responsibility as legally called for,
for securing library. On the contrary, it consciously allowed the
removal of material, entrance and egress, etc. 'Looting', petty and
wholesale removal.
5) Library was declared, by US, as destroyed and looted. All valuable
material gone. "An empty shell"
6) Military at library allowed regular daily truck-pick-ups of
library material which, it turns out (see WSJ 4/28/03, p1) were going
to a mosque under Shiite control for safe-keeping (unbeknowst to the
US authorities). This could be called looting or not. In any case,
the cleric in charge was making no secret of the core material's
centralization in his nearby facilities in the interest of its
protection.
7) No doubt, petty looting also took place, but there is reason to
believe that a large part of the ancient manuscript collections were
in fact saved. The rest of the collection remained in the library
under poor conditions and subject to exigencies.
8) While this was happening the Bush admin. was being lobbied by
corporate antiquities 'collectors' to allow the Iraq material from
the museum and library to find its way onto the market so they could
acquire it (free-market looting). This, in effect, was what was being
done as far as the world was concerned, so that when a cultural
figure declared that it was all irretrievable, s/he meant it was
either destroyed or on 'the international antiquities market' where
it would inevitably fall into private hands.
9. The US created the conditions for the destruction of - and
contributed to the destruction of - the physical facility of the
library. It allowed what looting took place and may have encouraged
it. It knew of the location of the vast bulk of core library
materials, while the press and people around the woprld were led to
believe it had "all been lost" Indeed, the military had been in
direct communications with the holders of this material.
10)There should have been MANY, MANY detailed photographs and
inventories made by the US authorities, None were apparently, unless
they are, for specious reasons, classified. This was criminal
negligence or cover-up, intentional or unintentional, creating the
possibility of weaving a story of whole cloth in the absence of
documentation.Mark Rosenzweig
ALA Councilor at large----------------------------------------------------------------------
MEETING ON IRAQI CULTURAL HERITAGE
Date: Tue, 22 Apr 2003 12:55:30 +0200
From: "Karin Passchier" <Karin.Passchier[at]ifla.nl>
To: <ifla-l[at]infoserv.inist.fr>Paris, 17 April 2003.
The founder members of the International Committee of the Blue Shield: the
International Council on Archives (ICA); the International Council on
Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS); the International Council of Museums; and the
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA),
were all represented at the meeting of experts called by UNESCO on 17th
April 2003 to discuss the damage to Iraqi cultural heritage caused by the
war.The official communiqué issued at the end of the meeting follows:
"The meeting deplores and is deeply shocked by the extensive damage to, and
looting of, the cultural heritage of Iraq caused by the recent conflict. It
calls on the coalition forces to observe the principles of the 1954 Hague
Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed
Conflict and its two Protocols.The meeting agreed on the following recommendations to those responsible
for civil order in Iraq:1. That all museums, libraries, archives, monuments and sites in Iraq be
guarded and secured immediately by the forces in place.
2. That an immediate prohibition be placed on the export of all antiques,
antiquities, works of art, books and archives from Iraq.
3. That an immediate ban be placed on the international trade in objects of
Iraqi cultural heritage.
4. That a call be made for the voluntary and immediate return of cultural
objects stolen or illicitly exported from Iraq.
5. That there be an immediate fact-finding mission under UNESCO
coordination to assess the extent of damage and loss to cultural property
in Iraq.
6. That there be the facilitation of international efforts in assisting
cultural institutions in Iraq."A fuller report of the meeting appears on the UNESCO website at
http://portal.unesco.org/ci/ev.php?URL_ID=9231&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201&reload=1051005491The UNESCO Director General's speech at the opening meeting is reported at
http://portal.unesco.org/ci/ev.php?URL_ID=8725&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201&reload=1051005490The International Committee of the Blues Shield will next meet on Monday
5th May 2003 in Paris. It will consider what it can do to help the process
of restoring and repairing the lost and damaged cultural heritage of Iraq.Ross Shimmon
President
International Committee of the Blue Shield
22 April 2003.----------------------------------------------------------------------
UNESCO Should Help Libraries and Archives in Iraq, Intergovernmental
Council SaysStrong support to UNESCO's position and action regarding the events in Iraq,
particularly as regards to libraries and archives, was given yesterday by
the representatives of 26 countries around the world, who met in Paris for a
meeting of the Intergovernmental Council for UNESCO's Information for All
Programme.The Council requested UNESCO to pay particular attention to libraries and
archives as they are "essential parts of the rich heritage of Iraq".
Council members also said that strong attention must be given to
governmental records as they are "vital for the functioning of public
administration and for the protection of the rights of Iraqi citizens".
In an unanimously adopted resolution (text below), the Council invited
UNESCO to cooperate with the competent non-governmental organizations such
as the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions
(IFLA), the International Council on Archives (ICA) and the International
Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives (IASA) in order to "safeguard,
preserve, reconstruct and develop libraries and archives" in Iraq and to
"further develop an information and knowledge based society".
The Council also examined two international standard setting instruments,
namely the "Draft Recommendation concerning the Promotion and Use of
Multilingualism and Universal Access to Cyberspace" and the "Draft Charter
on the Preservation of the Digital Heritage" and approved UNESCO's actions
in preparation of World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). Several
programme management issues were also on the agenda.Related links
UNESCO and Iraq <http://www.unesco.org/iraq>;
UNESCO's Information for All Programme http:/www.unesco.org/webworld/ifapContact
Axel Plathe, UNESCO, Information Society Division
_______________________________________________The Intergovernmental Council for the Information for All Programme, at its
2nd session (Paris, France, 22-24 April 2003)1. Having taken note of the declarations of the
Director-General and the decision of the 166th Session of the Executive
Board concerning the events in Iraq;2. Observes that they adequately reflect the principles and
responsibilities of UNESCO in its fields of competence;3. Supports the declarations of the Director General as well as
his actions in all fields of competence of UNESCO, particularly in the area
of the safeguarding of the cultural heritage in Iraq;4. Requests the Director-General, in doing so, to
a) Pay particular attention to libraries and archives
as they are essential parts of the rich heritage of Iraq and to governmental
records as they are vital for the functioning of public administration and
for the protection of the rights of Iraqi citizens;b) Cooperate with the competent non-governmental
organizations such as the International Federation of Library Associations
and Institutions (IFLA), the International Council on Archives (ICA) and the
International Association of Sound and Audiovisual Archives (IASA) in his
actions to safeguard, preserve, reconstruct and develop libraries and
archives in Iraq and to further develop an information and knowledge based
society.c) Urge all countries to take immediate steps to
monitor the trade in historical documents, and to call on all archives,
libraries and museums, together with antiquities dealers and collectors
worldwide to report all items proposed to them which they suspect may have
been looted from Iraq.
_________________________________________________________________________top
3. ALA optimism on GATS developments questioned
From: Miriam Nisbet <mnisbet[at]alawash.org>
To: ALA Committee on Legislation <col[at]ala.org>
Date: Friday, April 04, 2003 3:17 PM
Subject: [COL:687] GATS development (positive)Just wanted to let you know about a positive development regarding the GATS
this week. You'll remember that COL and the IP subcommittee played a large
role in the ALA resolution on the GATS last year. See
http://www.ala.org/washoff/gats.html for background, including the
resolution and correspondence between ALA President John Berry and the
Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR).WTO Members were supposed to submit by March 31 (Monday) initial offers to
broaden the range of service sectors they would each make subject to
specific commitments under the GATS. The one specific commitment of any
potential, practical concern to libraries is the National Treatment (NT)
commitment. If library services provided by public and publicly-funded
libraries were subject to NT, the federal, state and local governments
could potentially have to choose between having to provide subsidies and
other support to like foreign entities as well as US libraries, or not
providing such support at all.
The USTR, with which we've had continuing discussions over the past year or
more, agreed to use this initial offer process to clarify the scope of
library services covered by existing US specific commitments. Accordingly,
in its initial offer, the US has added qualifying language to the current
listing for Libraries, Archives, Museums and Other Cultural Services on the
US schedule of specific commitments, to exclude "non-profit, public and
publicly-funded entities." (see page 89 of THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA -
INITIAL OFFER available at
http://www.ustr.gov/sectors/services/2003-03-31-consolidated_offer.pdf ).With this qualification in place, the US would not be obliged to provide
National Treatment (NT) to like service providers from other WTO Member
countries, thereby effectively eliminating the only potential, practical
risk to these
libraries under the GATS at this time.What happens next? Now that the US has submitted its initial offer, it
must discuss it with other WTO Members. These discussions will occur on a
bilateral basis during bi-monthly, week-long meetings in Geneva. The next
meeting will be in May, followed by another in July. While this process
could continue into the Fall, discussions with major trading partners (the
WTO Members most likely to raise any concerns regarding any feature of the
offer) will likely occur
by July at the latest. In any event, the lead US negotiator for the GATS
has advised us that he believes that the proposed qualifying language will
not raise any concerns for major trading partners, or any other WTO
Members, and will become part of the US schedule without difficulty.USTR has agreed to stay in contact with ALA so that we can find out if any
issues arise, and we will certainly continue to monitor the situation.
However, it appears likely that the GATS will pose much less potential
concern for US libraries going forward.Miriam M. Nisbet
Legislative Counsel
American Library Association
1301 Pennsylvania Ave. NW - #403
Washington, D.C. 20004-1701
Voice: 202-628-8410, x. 202,or 800-941-8478, x. 202 Fax: 202-628-8419e-mail: mnisbet[at]alawash.org
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sat, 05 Apr 2003 13:28:04 -0500
From: Samuel Trosow <strosow[at]uwo.ca>
Reply-To: strosow[at]uwo.ca
To: akagan[at]uiuc.edu, Mark Rosenzweig <iskra[at]earthlink.net>
Subject: Some questions on the GATS issueCould someone with posting privileges please post the following to the ALA
Council list:It would certainly be wonderful if public libraries were indeed freed from
worries about GATS. But this statement from the Washington Office may be
a bit premature and might oversimplify some of the technical problems with
GATS. It would be helpful if the Washington Office could answer some
questions for clarification in order to help ALA members better understand
this issue:1) Even if the sector that directly affects public libraries
(10.C.Libraries, Archives, Museums and Other Cultural Services) were truly
exempt from National Treatment (NT) obligations, what about the other
sectors that include services that many libraries routinely provide these
days (i.e. such sectors include computer services, telecommunications, R&D,
education). Does the statment from the USTR only go to 10C directly, or
does it go to any sector classification whatsoever that may include a
service that may be offered by a public library? If it's the former, then
aren't libraries very much open to NT claims on account of services that
fall within one of the other classifications?2) Even if libraries are protected from a NT claim, are there other GATS
disciplines that could potentially give rise to a problem (such as most
favored nations, one of the horizontal committments). Does GATS allow
subsidy related complaints on any basis other than a violation of NT
committments?3) It seems as if the USTR is saying they will try to remove 10C from their
schedule of committments, at least with respect to public/non-profit
entities. Why did they make these committments in the first place? And
aren't these changes sometimes very hard to make without giving something
else up?4) It seems like one of the main problems for public libraries is the very
limited nature of the governmental services exception (services are exempt
if they are offered neither on a commercial basis NOR in competition with a
private sector provider). There's just so much overlap these days,
especially with libaries expanding their services to meet the needs of
their communities and the private sector expanding their potential markets
in the information sector. If the USTR really wants to help us, why doesn't
the US try to have this exemption expanded. If the exemption applied
accross the board, it would certainly simplify this whole GATS issue. And
such a change would help other service providers in the areas of health and
education as well as libraries. Has ALA been aggresively pushing the USTR
to work for this needed change in GATS?Thanks so much for providing some further information on these questions.
Samuel Trosow
Assistant Professor
University of Western Ontario
----------------------------------------------------------------------
For some background on GATS and libraries, see http://libr.org/GATS
-editor
_________________________________________________________________________top
4. On George Iles' plea for a headquarters for ALA, in 1903
"A Library of Libraries"
The Nation, July 30, 1903, p. 89.
At the recent meeting of the American Library Association, Mr. George
Iles, whose services to critical cataloguing have won him the gratitude
of many readers, made a plea, now published in pamphlet form, for a
headquarters for the Association. By gaining such a home the
Association, which now conducts an occasional dress parade, would
organize itself into a working staff to direct and promote library
interests throughout the country all the year round. Such an
institution as a repository of all kinds of information on preserving
and circulating books would be a library of libraries. Its usefulness
will appear as its various departments are enumerated.At headquarters would naturally be collected all manner of information
about library buildings - photographs, plans, and description of
furnishings. Thus a great number of examples to follow or to avoid
would be furnished to library committees; and in order that the
profusion of material should not cause bewilderment, the central
officials would appraise each building from the point of view of library
economy, pointing out in detail its advantages and defects. In some of
our greatest library buildings the architects have signally failed to
grasp the practical needs of the situation. Clearly it would be well
if, before putting pencil to paper, every architect with a library to
build should first seek the fountain-head of modern library lore.
Undoubtedly, the necessary materials would be sent on liberal conditions
to those who could not make the pilgrimage in person.In its department of administration the general staff would merely
continue under more favorable circumstances the work already excellently
begun by the American Library Association. Here one approaches mystery.
The layman must be content to believe that the science of
classification grows wider and deeper with the process of suns, and he
must accept of faith, too, that gentle moral suasion by which
communities are weaned from the novelette and put upon adult diet of
poetry, history, and biography. Again, the competing claims of
book-stack and open shelves may not be weighed by the inexpert. But
there is doctrine for all these matters, and a central authority alone
could hope to build up a set of dogmas sufficiently flexible and exact
to have authoritative weight. It is certain that the broad lines of
library polity might be established by such a body, and many defects due
to inexperience and the absence of authorities done away with.Naturally, Mr. Iles spoke in behalf of the work with which his name is
particularly associated - that of appraisal of books. This means, in
short, that beyond the usual indications, library catalogues should
briefly characterize each book and estimate its value. A good beginning
has been made in Mr. J. N. Larned's creditable work, "The Literature of
American History," but Mr. Iles looks forward to a time when all
"working books" shall be thus appraised. As things are to-day, the
average reader is helpless before the list of hundreds of titles under
each subject head. A note on each catalogue card giving the character
of the book would yield the assistance now necessarily imperfectly
supplied by the library attendants. But evidently the preparation of
such critical notes requires expert skill and involves considerable
expense. Probably no single library could afford to undertake it. A
central library committee, however, could do this useful work for the
country at large - issueing either the complete "appraisal" cards or
pasters to be used on the present library cards. As literature
accumulates upon all subjects, such evaluation becomes increasingly more
imperative. It could be managed nowhere so economically as by a
committee with specialist collaborators, which might reasonably hope to
sell its cards and catalogues throughout the country.Finally, the proposed general library staff might coordinate and control
the work of library extension. "Travelling libraries" are already
familiar to our readers. Circulating Art Exhibitions, composed of
carefully selected reproductions of fine examples, have been inaugurated
with success by several States. There is a comic suggestion about the
"circulating lecture," but the thing itself is sensible enough.
Carefully prepared lectures with the necessary lantern slides are sent
about, and the lecture is read by a member of the local association.
One might feel that it would be far better to select for illustration
essays and printed lectures from standard literature; but as to the
general practicability of the plan there is no doubt. At the central
repository are kept slides and manuscripts, and the lectures are usually
accompanied by a small collection of books on the subject of the course.
Last winter, Professor Penhallow, from his headquarters at Montreal,
thus conducted free lectures in fifty-one towns, villages, mining, and
lumber camps throughout the Dominion. It is highly desirable that some
skilled body should have the care of all such movements, for nowhere is
half-culture more out of place than in popular education. The people
fare ill when they exchange carelessness of the things of the mind for
the sentimentality of the faddist of the vulgarity of the intelletual
quack. In all these matters a committee of library extension might
exercise a very tonic influence.Mr. Iles saves to the last his estimate of the cost and condition of an
effective Library of Libraries. Some great central library must give
it, if not house room, at least the freedom of the premises; and some
benefactor or benefactors must start it with an endowment of a million
dollars. When the usefulness of such an institution is once fully
understood, we do not anticipate any difficulty on either score._________________________________________________________________________top
5. Revolution is not an AOL Keyword*
You will not be able to stay home, Netizen.
You will not be able to plug in, log on and opt out.
You will not be able to lose yourself in Final Fantasy,
Or hold your Kazaa download queues,
Because Revolution is not an AOL Keyword.Revolution is not an AOL Keyword.
Revolution will not be brought to you on Hi-Def TV
Encrypted with a warning from the FBI.
Revolution will not have a jpeg slideshow of Dubya
Calling the cattle and leading the incursion by
Secretary Rumsfeld, General Ashcroft and Dick Cheney
Riding nuclear warheads on their way to Iraq,
Or North Korea, or Iran.Revolution is not an AOL Keyword.
Revolution will not be powered by Microsoft on
The Next-Generation Secure Computing Base
And will not star Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee
Or Larry Lessig and Martha Stewart.Revolution will not promise penile enlargement.
Revolution will not get rid of spam.
Revolution will not earn you up to $5000 a month
Working from home, because revolution is not
An AOL Keyword, Brother.There will be no screen grabs of you and
Jeeves the Butler one-click shopping at My Yahoo,
Or outbidding a shady grandma on eBay for
That refurbished iPod 20-gig.
MSNBC.com will not predict election results in Florida
Or fact-check the Drudge Report.
Revolution is not an AOL Keyword.There will be no webcast of Wil Wheaton boxing
Barney the Dinosaur on the dancefloor at DNA.
There will be no mob- or wiki- blog of Richard Stallman
Strolling through Redmond in a medieval robe and halo
As St. iGNUcious of the Church of Emacs
That he has been saving
For just the proper occasion.Survivor, The Osbornes, and Joe Millionaire
Will no longer be relevant, and
People will not care if Carrie hooks up again with
Mr. Big on Sex and the City because Information
Wants To Be Free even while Knowledge Is Power.
Revolution is not an AOL Keyword.There will be no final pictures from inside the
World Trade Center in the instant replay.
There will be no final pictures from inside the
World Trade Center in the instant replay.There will be no RealVideo of 2600-reading,
Linux-booting white hat hacktivists
And Mickey Mouse in the public domain.
The theme song will not be written by Jack Valenti or
Hilary Rosen, nor sung by Metallica, Dr. Dre,
Christina Aguilera, Matchbox 20, or Blink-182.
Revolution is not an AOL Keyword.Revolution will not be right back after
Pop-up ads about eCommerce, eTailers, or eContent.
You will not have to worry about a
Cookie in your browser, a bug in your email, or a
Worm in your recycling bin.
Revolution will not run faster with Intel inside.
Revolution, dude, is not getting a Dell.
Revolution will increase your Google rank.Revolution is not an AOL Keyword, is not an AOL Keyword,
Is not an AOL Keyword, is not an AOL Keyword.
Revolution will be no stream or download, dear Netizen;
Revolution must still be live.*See generally Gil Scott-Heron, The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.
by way of Mary Beaty [UN NGO] American Humanist Association
777 United Nations Plaza, NY 10017 http://cebo.orgby way of Mark Rosenzweig - http://home.earthlink.net/~iskra
_________________________________________________________________________top
6. A Maypole, by Jonathan Swift
1725
Deprived of root, and branch and rind,
Yet flowers I bear of every kind:
And such is my prolific power,
They bloom in less than half an hour;
Yet standers-by may plainly see
They get no nourishment from me.
My head with giddiness goes round,
And yet I firmly stand my ground:
All over naked I am seen,
And painted like an Indian queen.
No couple-beggar in the land
E'er joined such numbers hand in hand.
I joined them fairly with a ring;
Nor can our parson blame the thing.
And though no marriage words are spoke,
They part not till the ring is broke;
Yet hypocrite fanatics cry,
I'm but an idol raised on high;
And once a weaver in our town,
A damned Cromwellian, knocked me down.
I lay a prisoner twenty years,
And then the jovial cavaliers
To their old post restored all three -
I mean the church, the king, and me.
_________________________________________________________________________top
7. Amusing Searches
The following is a list of amusing search expressions that led from search
engines (mostly Google) to pages on Libr.org during the month of April.how to become a god fearing person
electronic penis stretcher
as per your request please find attached
"world's largest pig"
iraqi bellydancers
easy illustrations on psycho-theories
"horror greeting cards"
mark rosenzweig niceness
gore vidal is a kook
Louise feels pity for her grandmother
do we need weapons for war?
my wife feminized get a operation
idi amin's location
whizzkids specialist equipment
"Many are the authors who may wonder if anyone is paying attention to what they write"
"the you brand"
did the people who banned the novel Lolita succeed
yontz origin
rapture flowchart
people who used propaganda for bad
old arabic penis
chinese paper ,what do we use it for
Tips for Belly Stomach Inflation
Juice Verne
_________________________________________________________________________top
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