Steven

My SA has a piece about the popular “Radical Militant Librarian” button that ALA has been selling in response to the FBI calling librarians that in e-mail correspondence.

“I saw it and I couldn’t resist,” Krug said of the librarian-slam-turned-money-making button. “The head of our store said it was the fastest-selling button he’s ever seen. They were flying off the shelves.”

Proceeds from the buttons, which cost between $1.25 and $2, depending on the number purchased, go to the ALA’s Office for Intellectual Freedom.”

“Krug acknowledged the buttons fly in the face of conventional stereotypes of librarians.”

My wife sent me a link to this article in Newsday discussing a survey being released today that shows the poorest communities in Nassau County are paying the highest library taxes in the county:

“Harvey Levinson, chairman of the county board of assessors, said the survey showed that in lower income communities such as Roosevelt and Lakeview residents pay more for library service than they do for police. They pay four or five times the tax rates assessed on more affluent communities, such as Lawrence or the Gold Coast Library District in Glen Head.”

From The Daily News Tribune:

“Law enforcement and Newton Free Library officials were embroiled in a tense standoff last week when the city refused to let police and the FBI examine library computers without a warrant.”

“Police rushed to the main library last Wednesday after it was determined that a terrorist threat to Brandeis University had been sent from a computer at the library.”

“But requests to examine any of its computers were rebuffed by library Director Kathy Glick-Weil and Mayor David Cohen on the grounds that they did not have a warrant.”

From Canadian Jewish News:

“The York Region District School Board has pulled a controversial children’s book about the Middle East from the prestigious Silver Birch Awards reading program for older elementary school students, but the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) will continue to make the book available to its students.

The book, Three Wishes: Palestinian and Israeli Children Speak by award winning author and anti-war activist Deborah Ellis, focuses on the testimony of Israelis and Palestinian children, and includes their views on everyday life and the Mideast conflict.”

From Canadian Jewish News:

“The York Region District School Board has pulled a controversial children’s book about the Middle East from the prestigious Silver Birch Awards reading program for older elementary school students, but the Toronto District School Board (TDSB) will continue to make the book available to its students.

The book, Three Wishes: Palestinian and Israeli Children Speak by award winning author and anti-war activist Deborah Ellis, focuses on the testimony of Israelis and Palestinian children, and includes their views on everyday life and the Mideast conflict.”

An interesting quote from an article on the leader of the American Veterans In Domestic Defense:

“AVIDD’s true agenda became glaringly obvious when Cabaniss said that the books were put in the library by a gay, lesbian and transgendered task force devoted to spreading their lifestyle to others. He said, â€?This group represents only one percent of the American people and they are deciding what goes into our libraries.”

“He then stepped off his flatbed pulpit to approach a group of young males protesting AVIDD. â€?I recognize you,“ Cabaniss said to the three men. â€?You’re part of the one percent.“

According to CNN, one nameless librarian really loves the idea of video iPods.

“I’m thrilled by the possibilities of combining devices,” said ‘Soccergirl,’ whose opinionated and sexually suggestive program was listed among the 40 most popular podcasts on Apple’s iTunes service.”

“The new iPods “will make it easier for many of my listeners to watch my video as easily as they listen to my show,” she said”

An interesting article on graphic novels from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer:

“Not only are comics the hottest thing in teen and adult publishing, they’re getting a whole lot of love from librarians, who are scrambling to flesh out their graphic-novel collections and understand the market.”

“So it was inevitable that the comics craze would extend down to the original, but long-forgotten, part of the fan base: kids.”

There is an editorial in the Star Tribune on the state of the Minneapolis libraries:

“Minneapolis libraries are in terrible financial condition. Not even during the 1930s was library staff reduced by 27 percent, as occurred last year, or were branch library doors closed three and four days per week, as they are today. No other major American city offers library patrons fewer hours of service.”

A quickie in Time on libraries hiring collection agencies for materials not being returned on time. Ouch! Talk about bad PR.