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.

[Proud 2BeTexan]

My library has Hillary's book, but it also has all of Ann Coulter's, Hannity's, Rush's.... etc. on and on.

Pro-Bush books seem to outnumber the anti's.

But, then, I'm in Texas. ;-D

[Gabz]

I can't believe all the half-baked, thoughtless rage on this thread. If the rest of the country's are at all like the ones here in Charlotte, public libraries are a complete waste.

I'm sorry you have had bad experiences with public libraries, the vast majority of my experiences have been very good.

[Sensei Ern]

(sarc)Too wordy for me to read the whole thing.(/sarc)

Public libraries are a great source for those who cannot afford to purchase books. Myself, any perosnal income I could spend on books my wife will spend on new curtains.

I do agree though that a library that has to worry about things like Political Correctness and promotes liberal ideas, dismissing conservative thought as oppressive, has way too much extra cash on hand.

But, libraries that focus on making sure the masses have free access to literature and written word is a good investment. For the cost of one book, twenty plus people can have access to its valued contents.

THere is overhead in running a library, of course. BUt when you multiply it by the number of people who benefit from it, it is a small investment.

In my personal experience, I have read the entire Tom Clancy collection, plus studied two college courses, learned how to improve my standard of living, improved my standard of living (no, I did not type that twice...one was learning how, the other was applying what I learned), learned three computer languages, and am able to relieve stress by relaxing in a silent room re-reading Tolkien's writings.

[evilC]

Public libraries are not expensive in tax dollar terms. My local library system allows out of county members for a fee of $25 per year (what they reckon is the average cost per taxpaying household).

I find it sad that when we have a "budget crisis" (i.e. spending crisis) the first thing to be cut are the libraries (or parks), and not the areas where the real money is spent, public education and "free" healthcare. If you want to complain about government expenditure it seems silly to fret about 1% of the budget and ignore the 80% were the money actually goes.

I would have no problem with libraries charging membership fees, but feel it is a waste of time to get irate over the relatively tiny expenditure on libraries while ignoring the elephant in the room that is "free" public education and healthcare.

The first public libraries were actually private institutions set up by the likes of Carnegie, so government involvement does not seem to be a necessity, although it may provide wider access because private donors may prefer big, central, "statement" type of facilities.

http://www.alibris.com/ and http://www.bookfinder.com/ are places to find out of print or hard to find books (I am sure there are others).

[CalRepublican]

You guys aren't getting the objections. Bureacrats are building these things as monuments to themselves on the backs of taxpayers.

I don't like the idea of a city taking money to make something beautiful where we can all go.

[IAMNO1]

I don't believe they get it. It's all where you draw the line on governmental imposition and intervention. They're a lot closer to tax and spend liberals than we are.

[The Great Yazoo]

This libertarian cant is usually an excuse for not thinking.

Yes. I was just thinking in light of all the video materials available at my public library, those people who tried to start a private videotape rental service, I believe they called it "Blockbuster," if I remember correctly, must have been unthinking libertarians subject to much cant. "Blockbuster" what fools! They should have just called it "Bust!"

[Ciexyz]

Good for you, if you can afford thirty bucks for a book. Many of us (retired, students, underemployed or unemployed) can't.

And guess what...since my vote is as good as YOURS, I get to tell you to pay for my library!

HAHAHAHAHA!!!!

[x]

Your argument makes more sense if you turn it upside down. Blockbuster made a big smash in the media and expanded when people weren't aware that quality video materials were available in libraries. So the question wasn't whether Blockbuster could succeed despite the powerful competition of public libraries, but whether libraries could provide a worthwhile video service as an alternative to outlets like Blockbuster.

And they have. Plenty of people subjected to all the advertising and hype for Blockbuster would be surprised and pleased to find that they can get a lot of the same stuff at public libraries for free. Not the very newest stuff, and not everything, but a lot, especially since you can get videos from other libraries through inter-library loan. If the public library were the only way to borrow videos people would certainly want a better alternative. But as an alternative to mass-market commercial services they do quite well and fill an important niche.

Now of course it's your taxes that pay for it, but in that case, isn't it wise to take advantage of what's available? Perhaps you'll find other things that aren't available at Blockbuster as well.

[The Great Yazoo]

My overly snidely asserted point was that if people would rent video materials from a for-profit business like Blockbuster (a single store routinely stocks thousands more materials than your typical public library), what would happen if government failed to provide library services? We really don't know, but we might get more and better literary services from private companies.

I am not anti-library, by any stretch of the imagination. I think libraries are unique among government agencies. No one is compelled to go to the library. It's there for you, if you want. If you don't, well, that's ok, too.

Most other government agencies, from the police department to the waste department to the water department to the sewer department, rely on compulsion and force in connection with their services.

I regularly went to libraries as a child and now I regularly take my four children there. My family is recognized by library staff as one that shows up regularly. And while our local library system is excellent, its materials are limited. Any one of our local Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, or Borders has an infinitely broader selection of materials on hand (which goes back to my earlier point).

And government-run libraries aren't necessary for there to be good libraries. My church, for example, has an excellent library (mostly, but not exclusively, religious materials). Not at all at government expense.

Perhaps you'll find other things that aren't available at Blockbuster as well.

Indeed you will. Because of economic incentives, the library will have stuff sit on its shelves for years between check-outs. Blockbuster's real estate costs are such that it has the incentive to get rid of stuff that people don't watch. The library counts the unviewed-for-years video as a part of its collection.

The library cannot and will not meet every esoteric need. I recently asked my library to obtain an inter-library loan of a recently published historical atlas of central Asia. It was "no can do." I don't blame them. Nor do I blame them for not purchasing the atlas. At $150.00 it was more that I am willing to spend to purchase it myself.

[spinestein]

[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?]




I like pizza.

[Ruth A.]

Good idea, but it won't fly. Perhaps if library card holders were allotted a certain amount of time daily and anything above that would be charged. You know, some people think that everyone is entitled access to the Internet.

[CindyDawg]

Truant officers never bothered me:').

[CindyDawg]

You do know that you can drink and read, don't you?:')

[CindyDawg]

My favorite memory is off a 10th grade English teacher stating that if you had not started on your research paper, forget about it because it could not be done in 2 days. She was looking directly at me fo some reason. I started from scratch and made an A. That was the good thing about being an under achiever. No one expected anything of me.

[CindyDawg]

Sigh. You too? Ok, I don't recommend it but you can smoke pot and read too:')

[CindyDawg]

I homeschooled and have no kids in school or college. Why should I pay property taxes? Life isn't fair. Get the gov. to get rid of all the other special projects and I'll go for private libraries, ok? I pay so much in taxes for stuff that I shouldn't that it's nice to get some kind of pleasant return occasional though.

[stands2reason]

If it weren't for libraries, I'd still be voting Democrat.

[borntobeagle]

I like your logic. And if we follow your logic, I will no longer pay for roads because I don't drive, pay for your kids schools (if you have any) because I have none in school, or pay for a jail that I never intend to go to. I have to add, in case you do not frequent libraries, a lot of donated monies go toward the purchase of books.

Government employees make the selection, but if you are active with your library you are welcome to make suggestions.

I can check out current event books that are not outdated. And by not spending additional money on top of what I already pay through taxes and educational materials, my family can definitely read more than what my income would allow.

I am sorry to hear that you have terrible librarians. I would have to say that if you think every librarian is rotten, maybe the problem is in the mirror. I would have to cite the exact opposite in my location. This is the ONE AND ONLY aspect of the government that actually has a program that embraces homeschooled children. I've had one run-in over the past several years, and other than that, they are generally great people who are more than willing to help.

It's not a matter of nostalgia, its a matter of extended education.

[radiohead]

That was the good thing about being an under achiever. No one expected anything of me.

Gee. If you don't mind my saying, that's kinda sad. We often behave and produce to the level of what's expected of us. But, since you are a FReeper now, I assume you have gone on to do good things in your life.

I just read your homepage. You had me going there!