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June 30, 2006
American invasion
We have to be careful to avoid an invasion by US ground and air forces. The news of library closures is being reported daily by the American Press.
NewsTrack- United Press
Small libraries targeted in BritainLONDON, June 29 (UPI) -- Small public libraries in Britain could be going the way of slow local trains.
The government said recently that more than 100 libraries could be closed, the Christian Science Monitor reports. That's a tiny fraction of the 3,500 library branches around the country, but it has people in some rural areas up in arms.
"This is not just a library, it's a community center," said Hugh Wood, a longtime user of the library in Virginia Water, a village not far from Windsor Castle.
Public libraries as a British institution grew by leaps and bounds for most of the 20th century. In the 1980s, users borrowed 650 million books a year, a figure that has dropped to about 270 million as the Internet and bookstores have drawn away customers.
Now, small libraries are inviting targets for public officials trying to save money. Library backers say they need to change, something that could be harder for small facilities.
Posted by Perkins at June 30, 2006 9:37 AM
Comments
Tim, I put to the DCC Library Service at an informal meeting the statistical analysis used in their selection of the 12 libraries proposed for closure was out-of-date, irrelevant and wrong.
It does not even take account of the specific request from Mr Lammy to consider the effect on communities of any closures. To now go into more detailed criticism of this analysis is I believe counter productive.
It is more important for DCC to consider the case made during their "consultations" and to confirm at an early date the libraries will stay open; then progress with local communities the implementation of proposals for improvements.
Posted by: Alan Davis at July 1, 2006 12:27 PM
Readers of the Good Library Blog might like to know that librarians (even those in Great Barrington, the small town where Berkshire Publishing hangs its hats) have been extremely active in campaigning against the so-called Patriot Act. I remember hearing someone say, "You're really in trouble when the librarians are up in arms." Let's hope this blog mobilizes the good women and men of the library services on both sides of the Atlantic. (Here's one article about the Patriot Act--by the way, it's Mason, not Macon, Library in Great Barrington, and that's the library you see upper left on this blog.)
Posted by: Karen Christensen at July 3, 2006 12:03 AM
I think I forgot to paste in the link. Here it is: http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA339610.html
Posted by: Karen Christensen at July 3, 2006 12:08 AM