[org.whodat]

,EM>The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers and effects, against unreasonable searches and siezures shall not be violated ... I think one can argue that your library records, as say your banking records, are "effects" within the meaning of the 4th Amendment and thus not just a "library" issue but that of the patrons as well.

This is BS, and I think the word, PUBLIC, means just that, the library belongs to everyone and therefore the papers are a matter of public record.

[Paul Ross]

No kidding! These entities don't hesitate to publish and embarass the reputations of patrons which are 'overdue' and refuse to pay the imposed fines -- well after any state Statute of Limitations would make any such unenforceable.

[John Beresford Tipton]

"PUBLIC, means just that, the library belongs to everyone and therefore the papers are a matter of public record."

No, that is not true. Absent a state Freedom of Information Act provision that allow it, you, a member of the "Public," have no right to examine their records.

Similary the state/city library, has the right to damand a warrant before it forks over any of its records to a federal investigator.

[eno_]

This is BS, and I think the word, PUBLIC, means just that, the library belongs to everyone and therefore the papers are a matter of public record.

Have you ever been treated in a state or municipal hospital? If so, may I have your medical records? Your position on libraries may indicate an undiagnosed disorder.