December 2004

Foxtrot has a cartoon about Google and Libraries. You can see the comic at http://www.ucomics.com/foxtrot/2004/12/27/

tncorgi writes “some good ideas here…
Educators give ideas on reading over break, From The Marietta Times.

Here’s The Story.”

The AP Is Reporting Susan Sontag, the author, activist and self-defined “zealot of seriousness” whose voracious mind and provocative prose made her a leading intellectual of the past half century, died Tuesday. She was 71.

Bob writes “The “politico” who wants to ban the purchase of any homosexual material by taxpayers, admits he hasn’t worked out all the criteria: Allen claims he is acting to “encourage and protect our culture”. The Guardian Has more: President Bush wants ‘pro-homosexual’ drama banned. Gary Taylor meets the politician in charge of making it happen “

Anonymous Patron writes “Average First Novel Advances is a neat page from author Justine Larbalestier. She emailed a bunch of people she knows who have sold a novel and asked them what they got. Every single one answered—some within nanoseconds. She asked fellow Aussies, folks from the UK, Canada and the US how much they got for their first novel. Because the majority are USian she translated everything into US dollars. Here are the answers with year of sale. Average advance: $5,920 “

Anonymous Patron writes “News From San Bernardino County California; Five Ontario City Library employees believe they may have stopped a sexual predator from committing a crime against a child, thanks to a law-enforcement Web site that lists photographs, addresses and names of registered sex offenders.”

Anonymous Patron writes “A librarian saves books from bombs is a book review of “Alia’s Mission: Saving the Books of Iraq” by Mark Alan Stamaty. In 2003, after the United States and its allies invaded Iraq, the National Museum in Baghdad was looted and many ancient art treasures were lost. But in the weeks leading up to the invasion, a different kind of treasure was saved, thanks to a heroic effort spearheaded by an Iraqi woman.”

The Curmudgeony Librarian writes “A break-in at the Noel Wien Library in Fairbanks, AK may end up costing much more than the $300 dollars stolen from the cash drawer.
The thief broke a one-of-a-kind stained glass window to gain entry to the building. The window was titled “Alaska In Vitro,” and showed a panorama of Alaska. Artists Donna Alania Clark, Cherie Garfinkle and Douglas Yates created the work in 1979. It is hoped that the work can be repaired, but officers valued the damage at over $10,000.

The break-in occurred Monday December 20th about 2:30 a.m. Anyone with information regarding the burglary is urged to contact the Fairbanks police department. Contact information can be found on their website, serious tips only, please.”

Anonymous Patron writes “A Neat List (.pdf file) that says it’s an authoritative, annotated, widely disseminated reading list for children,
describing books portraying aging and older adults in a positive light. Numerous studies have found that while American children have a
positive view of old older adults in their own family, they have a negative world
view of aging.”

Bob writes “Did Confederate Gen. Evander McIver Law loot the South Carolina Statehouse when he fled Columbia, SC ahead of General Sherman in 1865? Well, trying to figure out the rightful owner is now playing out in a U.S. Bankruptcy Court:
Click here for the story.


“Libraries and collectors are waiting to see whether the case has repercussions, such as states gaining the right to take anything that once belonged to the government.””