The Wisconsin Library Association has warned libraries about the new federal Patriot Act, leading some to purge circulation records to protect privacy, and others to begin warning patrons about the law’s effects.
Mark Corallo, a Justice Department spokesman in Washington, D.C., said last week that to get a search warrant under the Patriot Act, the FBI must show evidence to a federal judge that the records being sought would involve international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities, which would be foreign spying.
“The FBI,” he said, “is prohibited from conducting investigations of U.S. citizens solely on the basis of activities based on the First Amendment. We can’t go to the library and say, ‘We want to see all the records.’ “
Child Porn?
Mark Corallo continues to amaze. He says (correctly) that it’s perfectly legal to get rid of circ records on returned items–as thousands of properly-designed library systems have been doing for many years.
But the man can’t leave well enough alone: He has to throw in child pornography.
Show me the Wisconsin library that circulates child pornography (which is illegal), and I’ll *give* you the Brooklyn Bridge: I know of no library that retains or circulates illegal materials.
And, of course, most states protect circulation records (but the Patriot Act overrides the protections).
The only connection I can see is that the FBI’s spokesman wants to connect Libraries and Child Porn in the public’s eye.