Rise in porn site viewers forces library to pull Internet access

The Macomb Daily ^ | 11/27/2006 | Mitch Hotts

[cyclotic]

Internet access for the public at the Mount Clemens Public Library has been revoked because of an increase in the number of people looking at sexually explicit material. Advertisement

The plug was pulled on the computers earlier this month after employees noticed a "large increase" in visitors using the free Internet service to access what the library termed obscene material in violation of library policies.

"There seemed to be a sudden increase in that kind of activity, and it was really bothering me. I thought something needed to be done," said library Director Donald E. Worrell Jr.

Library staffers acknowledge there have been complaints from people who want to use the Internet terminals for legitimate reasons, but seemed to understand the rationale once it was explained.

Worrell said his decision was difficult because public libraries encourage intellectual freedom and strive to avoid censorship. However, given the noticeable increase in pornography being displayed, Worrell said he felt action was needed.

"We have families and kids who have witnessed some of these activities going on and they were just shocked," Worrell said.

The controversy is not unique to the Mount Clemens Public Library, say experts in the library field.

"It's definitely an issue many libraries encounter," said Gretchen Couraud, executive director of the Michigan Library Association in Lansing. "The issue comes down to protecting free speech rights for adults while balancing the need to protect children from viewing the material."

Libraries can -- and do -- install filter software that can prevent pornographic material from being displayed.

But the Library Privacy Act, which went into effect in 2000, states if the facility provides public access to the Internet, there must be at least one unfiltered terminal for people 18 and older.

Furthermore, the law specifies that an adult can ask for the filter to be removed while he or she uses the terminal.

Libraries have come up with innovative methods to comply with the law and still shield minors from sexual material. Some libraries have Internet terminals in separate rooms for adults, with the children's computers having the restrictive filter system.

Others use privacy screens or "blinders" on the top of the terminals, designed to prevent passers-by from viewing the screen.

In the Sterling Heights Public Library, all computers have filters except those facing the reference desk, which are unfiltered but open to the inspection of library workers.

"We did that in response to some problems with people looking at inappropriate material," said Carol Lingeman, the head librarian. "That seems to have controlled it. Everyone in the library community has to make a decision on how to best address the situation."

In Mount Clemens, the terminals are all in public view, said Worrell.

Mount Clemens is consulting with the Macomb County Sheriff's Office and its legal firm to decide what course of action to take. Sheriff's deputies were asked to make more frequent walk-throughs of the library in an effort to discourage people from looking at pornography.

It's not clear when the Internet ban will be lifted in Mount Clemens.

"We need to find some better ways to control the public use of the Internet terminals so we don't have to worry about families coming in here and their children seeing something they shouldn't," Worrell said.

[Dumb_Ox]

It's great to see a library who is more concerned with decency and propriety than in keeping with the liberal agenda.

It'd be a cleaner break with liberalism if they just started kicking out the pervs and reporting minors to their parents, rather than take away access from everybody else.

[B4Ranch]

I just assumed that pedophilic sites would not be allowed on the Internet. True?

[Billthedrill]

Porn? On the Internet? Who knew?

[theDentist]

I thought so too, but they exist out there, often under generic names or descriptions...

[Mac1]

might be wrong but I think what defines a particular site for blockage here (in the UK) might be something to do with the site address similar to some premium telephone numbers

[longjack]

Beware of these blocking services.

Filters may use an ACL (Access Control List) with a list of known URL's, and/or can read the content of a page before it is loaded, and block those with enough blacklisted words to score beyond a specific tolerance threshold.

A 'stock' Filter may block a variety of sites generically deemed inappropriate for children, but the sysadmin should be able to put valid educational sites into an exception list that will not be filtered.

On our filters I put an e-mail link to me on the page that loads when a site is blocked. The email sends me the URL of the blocked site for my review, and if it is a legitimate site for their school work I can unblock it in a minute or so.

[GOPJ]

Porn? On the Internet? Who knew?

I don't think "porn's" the problem - the problem's "porn in a public library".

I don't object to people going to the bathroom - but I don't want it happening in an open reading room at the public library. It's appropriateness - there's no porn watching at work either...

[ViLaLuz]

"Just put the PC's in the most visible and busiest part of the library: right near the entrance with the monitors facing the entrance way and front desk."

There are perverts who get off on shocking people. They would go to the porn sites anyway.

[plan2succeed.org]

I am very critical of the American Library Association for pushing inappropriate material on children. The ALA goes out of its way to instruct librarians how to fool the public. Most librarians are not so radical and militant as the ALA. But there are good librarians. This article illustrates yet another.

Imagine a librarian willing to stand up against the ALA to make such radical statements as, "There seemed to be a sudden increase in that kind of activity, and it was really bothering me. I thought something needed to be done." In another shocking statement rarely made for fear of retribution from the ALA, this same library director said, "We have families and kids who have witnessed some of these activities going on and they were just shocked." THIS LIBRARY DIRECTOR OUGHT TO GET AN AWARD FROM HIS TOWN GOVERNMENT!

Here is the official stance of the ALA, as spoken by its de facto leader, Judith Krug: "I get very concerned when we start hearing people who want to convert this country into a safe place for children. I am adult. I want available what I need to see." Here's another example of what this leader of the ALA said, "Blocking material leads to censorship. That goes for pornography and bestiality, too. If you don't like it, don't look at it ... Every time I hear someone say, I want to protect the children, I want to pull my hair out."

In such an atmosphere, it is easy to see how the library director in this story has seriously jeopardized his career by making statements in favor of protecting his community from harm, directly opposed to the ALA's statements in opposition to community interests.

I'm serious. Someone nominate this man for recognition is his town. Librarians with the guts to make statements opposed to the radical aims of the ALA are few and far between.

SafeLibraries.org - Are Children Safe in Public Libraries?

[RobbyS]

Thanks to the sureme court, liberty turns into license. License leads to disorder, so liberty has to be restricted.

[Esther Ruth]

You know most libraries and library "Systems" (Branches - dozens of libraries joined that you can borrow from) are online now. You go online to your System, sign on, search for books in your system by name, author, subject, etc., and then just put (click) them on hold into your account. They call you or notify you by email that they are at the library you choose to get them at and then you pick them up. No going in and having to ask someone to search for the books for you and put them on hold etc. There's no limit to how much you can request and put on hold, dozens or more, as fast as you and your family can read them all.

The "vanity" libraries are terrible, agree. One within our system - unbelievable, huge monstrosity and the hours are ridiculous - closed completely on Fridays and open only 2 hours on Saturday!!!

[plan2succeed.org]

Alas even Mr. Worrell has bought into the ALA propaganda: "Worrell said his decision was difficult because public libraries encourage intellectual freedom and strive to avoid censorship."

"Intellectual freedom" as defined by the ALA is NOT the intellectual freedom you and I have in mind. The freedom the ALA is enforcing is the "freedom" to allow children access to inappropriate material. It's even enshrined in the so-called "Library Bill of Rights," the enforcement of which with respect to age is the ALA's chief duty of all. How else can one explain why everyone knows children should not have access to inappropriate material, but the ALA says otherwise and the ALA positions control in most public libraries? The thing speaks for itself here.

And avoiding censorship? There's a propaganda line if there ever was one. The library director accepts this from the ALA hook, line, and sinker. Oh sure censorship sounds bad, and it is! But keeping inappropriate books from children is not censorship!! Besides, the ALA lost on this very issue in a US Supreme Court case where the Justices said, "The interest in protecting young library users from material inappropriate for minors is legitimate, and even compelling, as all Members of the Court appear to agree."

That same Court went further and said the use of Internet filters in public libraries is NOT censorship. SO WHY IS THE ALA PROPANGANDIZING PEOPLE INTO THINKING THERE'S A PROBLEM WITH CENSORSHIP WHEN IT LOST ON THAT VERY ISSUE IN THE US SUPREME COURT? And the statement by the library director, even as good as I said he is in my previous post, shows that he is still steeped in ALA propaganda. Unwittingly, I'm sure as the ALA propaganda machine is well oiled and well honed.

Another example of pure propaganda: "It's definitely an issue many libraries encounter," said Gretchen Couraud, executive director of the Michigan Library Association in Lansing. "The issue comes down to protecting free speech rights for adults while balancing the need to protect children from viewing the material." Wrong, lady. Read US v. ALA. (Hint: the ALA lost and lost big, and the issue has been asked and answered in that case -- no need to reraise it locally -- except to get the public to think US v. ALA doesn't exist.)

And the case went further to say filters may be used to enforce book collection policies on the Internet. Don't let the ALA fool you into thinking porn is perfect for public libraries. The US Supreme Court says it's not, and filters can be used to stop it. Whom do you believe, the ALA or the US Supreme Court?

And look at this: "But the Library Privacy Act, which went into effect in 2000, states if the facility provides public access to the Internet, there must be at least one unfiltered terminal for people 18 and older." Well will you look at that. This law from 2000 somehow trumps the US Supreme Court from 2003, the year of US v. ALA. THIS LAW NEEDS TO BE REEXAMINED IN LIGHT OF GUIDANCE FROM THE US SUPREME COURT.

Note libraries will do anything, ANYTHING, to prevent the use of filters, the only option that really works. Here, look, right in this very article: "Libraries have come up with innovative methods to comply with the law and still shield minors from sexual material. Some libraries have Internet terminals in separate rooms for adults, with the children's computers having the restrictive filter system. Others use privacy screens or "blinders" on the top of the terminals, designed to prevent passers-by from viewing the screen." These methods DO NOT STOP THE RAPE AND MOLESTATION OF CHILDREN IN PUBLIC LIBRARIES!! I have documented case after case of failures of these useless methods of protecting children. Is this what you want in your own communities? Methods that fail to protect children and the exclusion of the main means for protecting children?

Read US v. ALA and think for yourselves. Use US v. ALA to clear your minds of the ALA propaganda designed to keep your children awash in inappropriate material and exposed to opportunistic criminals.

Please consider my opinions as you decide what's right in your own communities.

[beaversmom]

Thanks for the ping. Judith Krug needs to be able to see what she needs to, huh? People need to look at porn? Next they will be requiring the libraries install private little rooms where the pervs can go to do their thing. Why don't they do peep shows at the library too? I've heard strippers describe what they do as free speech. Wouldn't want to censor anyone.

[plan2succeed.org]

Thanks. Here's more from the people who set the trends in our public libraries:

"Parents who would tell their children not to read Playboy 'don't really care about their kids growing up and learning to think and explore.'" 9/18/95 Citizen, quoting Judith Krug.

"As long as the BSA [Boy Scouts of America] is willing to encourage its youth to come to the library where such diverse writings as the Communist Manifesto, 'Heather has two Mommies' and Playboy can be accessed, we are doing the job of promoting a more open and just society." 4/11/06, James B. Casey, ALA Councilor-at-Large, Head Librarian at Oak Lawn Public Library, Illinois.

[Vicki]

If you want to be able to access a blocked web site in any of the software you can just go into administration and release it. But most of the softwares have already removed those sites from their black list which are updated regularly.

When our kids were young they were on a filtered internet service and they were able to find whatever they needed.

[plan2succeed.org]

Filters have greatly improved since then.

[Richard Kimball]

Libraries are only relevent anymore for people who want to pick up fiction and children's books. As a research tool, it's dead. Get rid of internet access at the libraries, and recognize that their only function is for people to pick up leisure reading material.

[Reeses]

They call you or notify you by email that they are at the library you choose to get them at and then you pick them up.

Libraries are trying to improve but it's cheaper to close the buildings, lay off the government workers, and just mail you the books from a warehouse 500 miles away with a return box similar to how NetFlix operates. But that too will be replaced by web only book reading.

It takes a lot of getting used to but I joined a commercial technical library that has 4,000 always up to date books. I can check out, read online, and download and print chapters for offline reading, without having to wait for someone to return the book. The print quality on a computer screen is not as good as paper but it's catching up. There are other things you can do that can't be done with a book such as google-like text searching. It's a little rough to use but it will get better.

Check out the free Project Gutenberg which has 19,000 books. The number of online-only libraries is growing and now there are university libraries that have only computer terminals, no actual books.

Traditional libraries have become mini-socialist dictatorships. Any book that does not fit the propaganda objectives of the day is lost to the trash bin forever. Leftists have always been the biggest book burners and they have a lock on the neighborhood libraries. Every narcissistic politician wants to build a new vanity library as their legacy. The buildings are impressive but there's never much money left over for buying new books.

[2harddrive]

However, the blocking software keeps out the NRA's website, but NOT the Brady Bunch's! (the gun banners)