source:
http://nypl.org/press/releases/?article_id=334

Philly has a huge budget gap. To fill the gap, the mayor proposed changing some stuff that the state legislature would have to approve. Problem is, the legislature is mired in the state budget crisis, so Philly’s problems took a back seat.

When the legislature ignored the city budget month after month, the mayor decided to take a big risk. He figured that if he threatened to slash critical services like police, firemen, garbage collection, and libraries, the state would meet all his demands. This is the so-called Plan C “doomsday” budget. It was never meant to actually be implemented. But now the unions are involved, so who the heck knows when the budget will be approved. The doomsday budget may very well go into effect.

I love reading and support libraries 100%, but I’m a lot less worried about these cuts than seeing the police and fire departments slashed. And every-other-week garbage collection? Not lookin’ too appetizing. And then there are the nonprofit social service providers who have already laid off workers, missed payroll, and cut back hours. A lot of them are going to fold forever.

That being said, it is still a shame.

Jesus fucking Christ on a stick! Nobody needs to “bomb” us back to the stone age we are doing fine all by ourselves thank you.

I think libraries are great, and although grassroots booklending/swapping is rad it doesn’t provide the same infrastructure as full-time intelligent people working to figure out the best way to disseminate and share books.

Some retards would cheer at the closure of the public libraries.

These retards are Libertarians.

(Via the invaluable Critiques of Libertarianism website.)

Sadly, I would not dream of letting my kids spend time alone at our public library. For the entirety of it’s daily operating hours our library is pretty much a homeless shelter. The last two times I went inside every single seat was occupied by homeless people, many of them sleeping.

In the morning when the library opens, there is a crowd of homeless waiting to get in. When it closes at night they have to be woken up and kicked out. Throughout the day there is a group of them just outside the entrance smoking and panhandling.

It’s sad but I would support closing our system down as well and using the money to give poor people free internet access at home.

Libraries are great institutions. Try raising a child without one. Or getting an education.

Once you have your education and job safely in hand perhaps you could get by with fiction paperbacks and non-fiction bought on line. But it would certainly be a poorer life.

PA is the only state in the nation without a budget, a bi-partisan proposal was hammered out in Harrisburg and now the Governor says he won’t sign it. This is affecting libraries and services across the state since no payments have been made to anyone since June 30th. People have been laid off at the county library headquarters in Montgomery County and services are being cut or suspended due to this impasse.

Even so, this newest budget proposal on the table will cut the public library subsidy by 34% and statewide library services such as databases and the statewide library card program by 75%. This is huge for libraries across PA and you will see services getting cut at libraries if this passes.

When the conservatives sell off all the public buildings, and burn all the books, electing progressives won’t bring back the Library or the community hospitals or clinics.

We have the government we deserve.

It’s quite frustrating once you realize the full extent of this–Philly (a Democratic city) is an economic engine in our state, yet somehow we operate at whim of (Republican) rural and suburban districts in the state legislature. For example, the state took over the Philadelphia Parking Authority in 2001. If you pay a ticket in Philly, the money goes to the state, not the city. Meanwhile Philly is characterized as a municipal welfare queen.

[By the way, Cory, I think your post is a bit premature. Our mayor and the state are basically playing chicken. The libraries just threw down their gauntlet against the state, sure to unleash a storm of protests.]

This was posted by a local philly blog that has been covering the budget crisis:

http://www.philebrity.com/2009/09/10/readers-cameraphone-we-regret-to-inform-you-that-due-to-the-budget-crisis-in-harrisburg-the-city-can-no-longer-support-your-brain/

Also, the Philadelphia Free Library is supported by both city funding and private funding. It was once described to me by an employee as having an incestuous relationship with the city. The library can’t survive without city funding, but the library itself is actually in part a private organization. Kind of weird, right?

So that being said, if they have private funds (i.e. $ from the pew foundation and other local non-profits) why can’t some of those funds be used to keep at least the main branch open? The central library has a massive rare books section, is a local landmark and until recently there were plans to expand it:

http://libwww.freelibrary.org/expansion/expandDesign.cfm

Where is Pew in all of this? Where are the private funds and foundations? Basically, if they were really going to shut it down, i would have expected to hear at least something about the private face of the library or at least from some of its funders.

Libraries are going to be extinct in 20-30 years anyway.

Every time that I think that education can’t be de-prioritized any more, somebody proves me wrong.

As soon as the contents of libraries are fully digitized (google is well on its way in doing that) and this ebook DRM crap is sorted out, the primary function of a library will be obsolete.

“I’m tired of people acting as if libraries aren’t relevant anymore because they themselves don’t go. That doesn’t mean that others don’t use them!”

I used libraries in school. I have never entered one again. I would bet that 90% of Americans fall in the same boat I do.

“Just because you aren’t on Medicare or don’t take advantage of disability benefits doesn’t mean that they aren’t beneficial and are going to die out. ”

Just because someone doesn’t use something, doesn’t mean they don’t see the use in it. Medicare serves a great purpose and the only thing I see that could possibly replace it would be absorbing it into a full universal health care system. But then, medicare is useful to everyone. Libraries are useful to researchers and students.

“Maybe you should try going to your local library sometime. You should walk through the childrens department and see all the kids learning to read”

…that’s what school libraries are for.

“and using computers that their parents can’t afford to have at home.”

…libraries are for loaning books, not public computer labs.

“You should try asking your librarian a question you think will stump them and see how quickly they come up with an answer or at least provide a source that could get you the answer.”

…there’s a guy who used to work at a used record store who could do the same thing with music. Now there’s an Iphone app that does it. Lexis Nexis and a host of computer apps search databases of texts and can do the same thing. Librarians are essentially experts at googling books.

“Hell, you can even rent DVDs there for free! Can you believe it?!?”

…great use of our public money.

“As a resident of Philly, I got my library card as soon as I could sign my name. I credit my local library for letting me choose my own adventures again and again. I can’t imagine Philly without its libraries. They’re too important to close! Even for one day!”

I am sorry you’ll miss it but don’t worry. It is a bluff.