Although I visit my local library far less frequently than I once did, instead much preferring to own all the books I read and fortunate enough to be able to afford to do so, I absolutely love them. They are priceless, noble, magnificent and, in my opinion, as essential to the well-being, development and happiness of humanity and civilization as hospitals and fire stations. To paraphrase someone famous, I believe the quality of a nation’s civilization and culture can be measured by how it treats its libraries.
The Coalition doesn’t care, though. Obviously. As austerity measures start to bite, it’s been predicted that as many as 600 libraries all over the UK could close. These barbarians and philistines, with calculators and spreadsheets instead of hearts and souls, care nothing for the damage they cause as long as a few quid can be saved and passed along to the rich and the privileged they so effectively serve.
So next time some soulless corporate-servant of a politician proposes the closure of your local library, a place where hundreds of working-class kids, the poor, the desperate, the young, the old, the able, the infirm, the curious and the hungry can escape, briefly, to magical worlds full of adventures, knowledge and access the greatest minds humanity has ever produced, spit on him/her in the street…
Condemn them for the dead-inside hollow husks they have become.
Mock them for the shallow, money-obsessed scum they unquestionably are.
Jeer and sneer at the spiritually-vacant non-entities they shamelessly show themselves to be as they demonstrate they know the cost of everything, the value of nothing and feel even less than that.
Shame them with the power of your protest and the passion of your defiance.
Knowledge is power, books are therapy, reading is healing and libraries are the churches of the thinking, the humane, the compassionate and the daring.
No to library closures anywhere. Free access to knowledge and beauty for all.
I have to agree with the above comments, I too am an avid reader, (who also likes to own his own books) and think that closure of so many libraries is an absolute no-no.
The library may be seen as “stuffy” to some people, but to others, its a source of learning, of peace and quiet, and to those who can’t afford the internet (yes these people really exist) then it is a place to use a computer, a place where groups meet, including book clubs, poetry clubs and other such groups.
Okay, so the vast majority have access to the web, and can research there, but a library extends further than that, services you pay for on the net, are free to browse at a library.
I was educated at a normal comprehensive school, and was lucky in my day to be able to have all the course work i needed, is that the case today? no, so a library is a place to source those things.
Don’t even get me started on “text speak”, in a society where people cannot spell, never mind punctuate, or use grammatically correct sentences, taking away such valuable places won’t help.
Knowledge is power.
Lest we not lose our power.
It is interesting to note that when the barbarians stormed the gates of the great cities of the ancient civilisations their first major act of vandalism was to destroy the libraries. The barbarians are no longer at the gates my friends – they have been “elected” into office and can now destroy our civilisation from within.
For their next trick they plan to monitor and listen to every email, phone-call, and tweet you make in the interests of “security”. I wonder just whose “security” they are thinking of!!
Absolutely, Harry. I have been thinking about the Library situation since the bastards came into power. I met a senior Linbrarian I know a few months back while out walking my dog. she had lost her job, as have most of the senior librarians in East Dunbartonshire, as they are the highest paid. I cant imagine a senior librarian gets hundreds of thousands. A friend once told me a few years back when the right get into power, libraries, welfare, NHS, education etc suffer while money for “security” is increased.
Libraries/education that is universal is no longer the case. Keeping the working class as mushrooms (kept in the dark and fed shite) keeps democracy in the hands of the elite.