Why have libraries when books on sale are cheap, accessible?

The Star - South Chicago ^ | April 24, 2005 | Michael J. Bowers

[SmithL]

Books are fine, but why do we need taxpayer-funded bookmobiles?

For that matter, why do we even need taxpayer-funded libraries?

Hasn't anybody heard of the bookstore?

I thought government was to put out fires and defend the borders. Not to give us stuff to read. I mean, thanks to the private sector, it's already everywhere you look. If I simply bought one copy of every magazine offered at the corner Mobil station — covering everything from Kawasaki motorcycles to Esquire women we love to Forbes financial advice — I'd be reading for the next year.

Yet, now the poor taxpayers in Orland Park are stuck three times over. First, they paid for an unneeded library. Then, they paid for an unneeded bookmobile. And now, they must pay the $8.5 million bill to settle the lawsuit over the 2001 bookmobile crash that left a man brain-damaged.

All this foolishness could have been avoided if government had just stayed out of the library business in the first place.

But, you might say: "We need a library system so that our neediest citizens can read as much as the well-off! Books are expensive!"

Well, it depends. If you buy hard-cover and full-price, then, yes, books can be expensive. Last Monday I bought "An Incomplete Education," the 1995 edition, by Judy Jones and William Wilson, off the shelf at the Borders bookstore in Evanston.

Later, looking at the receipt, I must admit I felt pretty stupid. List price for the book was $32.50. Adding tax, the total was $35.34. If books were always so expensive, there might be a case for keeping libraries. (Not bookmobiles.)

But, you see, there now exists Amazon.com, where you can order nearly any book you can think of for a bargain price, and in less than a minute. I kid you not. A couple of days after my purchase, I made a sample buy on Amazon to see the alternative price.

I have ordered from Amazon in the past, so they already have my billing (home) address, my work (delivery) address and my credit card number. I typed "Incomplete Education" into the search field. The book popped up as $21.45 new.

Trying to demonstrate thrift, I clicked on "used." I found a copy for $6.25. The seller labeled the condition as "very good." In other words: "crisp/clean/unmarked pages, in firm binding, with straight spine. Minor wear/scuffing to dust jacket. Minor edge wear."

This was good enough for me. I want to read the book, not mount it in a glass case.

Postage was another $3.95, for a total of $10.20. If I had proceeded, I could have had the book delivered to me at work by this coming Tuesday, for a savings from Borders of $22.30.

And you know how much time this order would have taken me? I counted the seconds: 31.

An excellent book (delivered to your desk, no less) for $10.20. Hmm. That sounds like a bargain to me. Let's do some math here. Divided by the 55,000 residents of Orland Park, the $8.5 million bookmobile settlement comes to $155 apiece. By my calculations, with that money a family of four could have bought 61 books from Amazon.

Now, instead, they have to sink it into a boondoggle.

There's another reason citizens should buy books rather than borrow them from a library. In my opinion, the only good books are those worth keeping. Then, in the future, you can return for the pleasure of rereading; or to refresh your memory about a certain quote; or to reprint a compelling passage for a column like this one.

If a book isn't worth keeping, it probably isn't worth reading in the first place.

Consider my new book. "An Incomplete Education" is just the reference for people like me who didn't pay attention in college. It's divided into 12 chapters: American Studies, Art History, Economics, Film, Literature, Music, Philosophy, Political Science, Psychology, Religion, Science and World History.

If you don't know something, you can just dip into the book and fake it. For instance, did you miss the movie "Citizen Kane"? Then read the synopsis here. It tells you what the fuss was back then and what the fuss is today. Now you can utter "Rosebud" with the best of them.

Another example: Suppose you get invited to a royal wedding and quickly have to learn the hierarchy of British peerage. Per my book, the mnemonic to remember is "Do men ever visit Boston?" Take the first letter of each word and you can impress for success: duke, marquis, earl, viscount and baron.

The book also gives you crucial pronunciation information. For example, despite all logic, viscount is pronounced VYE-count. I knew that one. But I didn't know this: Marquis is pronounced MAR-kwiss.

Finally, the book lists some really useful foreign phrases, such as the French "nostalgie de la boue." It means "yearning for the mud."

As the authors explain, the phrase refers to wallowing by a person you would have thought was above such a things — "particularly in a guess-who's-sleeping-with-whom context."

I don't know when, I don't know how, but someday I simply have got to work that delicious phrase into a column. And to think I never would have heard of it if not for "An Incomplete Education." If you can't afford $10.20 to buy such a valuable book, then you've got bigger problems than the price of books.

So, a memo to Orland Park: Dump the bookmobile. And maybe dump the whole library too. Let your citizens keep their tax money and buy their own books. It's the American way.

[LegendHasIt]

HMM...

Libraries are one of the very few things that I never minded paying taxes for.

I reckon I've read at least a quarter million dollars worth of books in my life (not counting some of the really rare books and manuscripts worth thousands of dollars each that I've had the privelege to read in libraries special collections).

Some of the many technical and/or limited demand books cost hundreds of dollars, and I'd have never been able to read most of them if I had to purchase them to do so.

And personally, I think that most books these days are WAY overpriced: 20-40 years ago I used to purchase an average of at least a hundred books a year (and thrice as many magazines). Now days, I buy MAYBE one book and 2 or 3 magazines a month on average. I just can't afford to buy like I used to. Book cost increases have FAR exceeded inflation.

While I can kind of see the author's point, I think he and those that agree are very short-sighted.

Most people are ignorant enough as it is. If everyone had to purchase every book they (may) ever read, they would be "even more ignorant". (Now, if we could just get rid of all the leftist librarians, who prefer their libraries filled with leftist type books...... but that's a whole different topic.)

[HitmanLV]

Works for me - anybody who argues against libraries has rocks in the head, I say!

[I_dmc]

Of course, there are such things known as Free Libraries, which are donor supported.

[A. Pole]

This is a stupid article. If I had bought every book I've read in my life, I'd need a house the size of Dallas just to put them in. Of course, I wouldn't be able to afford that house, because I would have spent all of my money on books.

Watch out - they will call you a socialist!

[redgolum]

For her job (preschool director) my wife checks out 20 some books a week. A libary is a great reasource for her!

I love it because I can browse old out of print books. You can't do that at B&N.

[A. Pole]

There is no constitutional justification for the government to steal taxpayers' money and use it to pay for libraries.

Hey, there is no "constitutional justification" for building the roads or mainaining the firemen stations.

The true freemarket solution is to have PRIVATE firemen teams who will negotiate the price during the fire like Marcus Crassue did (the freemarketeer who helped to overthrow the Roman Republic).

[DumpsterDiver]

If you're going to defend protecting the taxpayer against rape by the government, it has to apply to every non-constitutional expenditure....not just the ones you don't use.

I'm not following what you're saying. What is the connection between local/state taxes for libraries and the U.S. Constitution? Wouldn't this be a decision for the states to make?

[A. Pole]

I often go to the Cerritos Library. It is beautiful; having a giant aquarium, childrens section, and other areas that resemble some rich persons private library. It's all good until you consider that its paid for with taxpayer dollars.......it's far beyond what is necessary. It is another monument built for bureaucrats on the backs of the taxpayer.

I see nothing wrong if the general public (incuding the poor people) can use library which is beautiful and has "areas that resemble some rich persons private library".

Better to have beautiful libraries than beautiful banks and shopping malls.

[fight_truth_decay]

I did visit my hometown library one or two days a week, as a child. I would walk across the small cement bridge spanning a ever-flowing river that could swell during NE hurricanes; but still this stately structure would remain high and dry and accessible. The youth section was in the basement and I would take home 4-5 books a week. That library still stands today no worse for wear and has escaped its transformation into a tattoo parlor.

Now the library near me is a place of political bias..films put out by the Peace activists and other socialist agenda-sized materials. Upon moving to this community years ago, I had donated many books of recent publication to the affiliated bookstore of said library and was quickly told: "you know you are not getting paid for these don't you?". Thank you would very much would have sufficed.

The antiwar/activist groups have found a "free" stage for their socialist rhetoric. Upcoming is the celebration of Earth Day for children and adults with focus on (with library web links):
Appalachian Mountain Club http://www.outdoors.org
Natural Resources Defense Council http://www.igc.apc.org/nrdc/

Sierra Club http://www.sierraclub.org
Massachusetts Audubon Society http://www.massaudubon.org
League of Conservation Voters http://www.lcv.org Write your elected officials
Plant Trees, Stop Bush!
Become an LCV Volunteer

Union of Concerned Scientists http://www.ucsusa.org/ 4/7/05 "Top physicists urge halt to missile defense funding"

The library today is not like the library I like to remember.

[fight_truth_decay]

I love it because I can browse old out of print books. You can't do that at B&N.

I find Amazon has the out of date books I seek and often autographed and "fine" quality (used)of authors I like to collect.

However, even the library I wrote more harshly on above does save the reader the purchase price of a book. It has computer facilities and/or 50 computer ports, an architecturally "peaceful" design-Frank Lloyd Wright,jazz and musical guests, 25,000 volumes for adults, young adults and children including books, videos, DVDs, audiobooks, CDs, large print books, magazines and newspapers.

I just think that those that have lectured there have turned me sour on the whole library experience. But then that is my own personal hang-up.

[FreedomCalls]

They have table of contents and excerpts for most books

Not for "most" books, just for "some" books, and that's not even a "large number" of books -- very few in fact.

Amazon always shows a list of books similar to the one you're looking at.

Only on a similar subject. They will not offer unrelated material, which is where serendipity comes in.

[cyborg]

Books aren't cheap.

[MortMan]

"Try before you buy." When searching the stacks at the local lending library (a near alliteration), you will see a number of books on a subject, instead of immediately zeroing in on one author or one facet of a complex subject.

[HamiltonJay]

Whoever wrote this article obviously doesn't read much... flipping idiot.

[Puddleglum]

Agreed. I loved going to the library--especially during the summer.

Me too. And as another poster said, they used to be open 6 days a week, now ours is only open 3 or 4 or something, at odd hours. But you know what? Every second they are open, the free computer stations are swamped with people surfing the net, typing up stuff, etc. I sometimes think they should charge patrons by the minute to use the "free" computer stations in order to fund more extensive hours, purchase more books, and so on.

[mollynme]

Have you tried ABE book sellers ? They represent thousands of booksellers all over the world and have 15790 listings for Heinlein and 2811 for E.E. "Doc" Smith. I have found books there that I haven't been able to find anywhere else such as an ancient "Homeopathic Vade Mecum" for my med school graduate neice.

[BlackRazor]

There is no constitutional justification for the government to steal taxpayers' money and use it to pay for libraries.

If you're going to defend protecting the taxpayer against rape by the government, it has to apply to every non-constitutional expenditure

Are federal tax dollars used for public libraries? If not, there's no consitutional issue here.

[aimhigh]

I'm amazed to see all the socialists on this topic. Libraries are a socialist. I read all the time, but my library is controled by liberals, which influences books purchased. Why should my tax dollars be paying for liberals who want to read about Hillary's village?

[BlackRazor]

Have you tried ABE book sellers ? They represent thousands of booksellers all over the world

And ABE is only one such company. There are others as well, such as Alibris. You can run a book search through www.addall.com, and it will cull titles from numerous online book-selling companies, ABE and Alibris included (and many more).

[HamiltonJay]

Let me see.. Libraries are socialist? Education is socialist? I think it would be a shock to one of the most successful CAPITALISTS of all time that the library system he created is now believed to be socialist.

I walk into my local libraries (many of which I am fortunate enough to know Carnegie himself BUILT) and see not only Leftist but Right Wing books as well. The Downtown Business Library (which I visit nearly weekly) is full of Capitalist tomes. Forbes Magazine, the WSJ... hardly socialist.

Access to knowledge is KEY to having a strong nation. We cannot be a free nation if we do not have an educated and informed population. Libraries are wealth's of knowlege freely available to all that bother to get off their lazy butts and access.

They are probably among the greatest achievements societies have... Knowlege is not kept among the elite and the monks, from the people, but accessible to all the people. Yes no doubt some of the literary works kept there are drivel, but beside Hillary you will find Hannity and more importantly HOMER.

Society is more than just a bunch of folks living next to one another it is an interwoven community. We are greater and will achieve greater as a society when knowlege is available to all. This isn't socialism, this is reality.

It would be beyond shameful if a county or city or state turned its back on public libraries for its citizens. Citizens should demand it.. access to knowlege and information for all is what allows this nation to grow and prosper.

I find those who gripe about libraries generally are folks who have not bothered to attempt to gain much knowlege themselves.