I'm sad to say it because I'm fond of them, but who really needs libraries in the internet age anyway? Most people are very literate but hardly anyone reads actual books anymore, and those who do can either buy them cheaply on Amazon or source them elsewhere online.
Aside from that there's, what, borrowing DVDs, reading newspaper archives, and going online if you somehow don't have the internet at home? They do have value as community spaces, but I doubt he's referring to that, and often that value is subverted by using them as staging grounds for propaganda.
Does having a library in a town have any practical role in making its populace more educated, as he implies?
This is actually a great example of how many progressive beliefs are purely performative. I doubt "KP4NC" and his son have stepped inside a library for years. I think they by default believe that saying "Yay libraries!" is the enlightened, sophisticated position and they don't think even a single step beyond that.
(I'm including his son in that because it sounds like they were sniffing their own farts together for the whole trip, which is sad)
My local one is rather great for what it offers kids and teens as a place to hang out and play video games or do other random tasks to keep themselves occupied. Its usually quite full with the poor kids in town who'd never be able to afford a video game. No drag queens yet, so that hasn't been exploited.
I think the original purpose as a book center has long since lost its use, but the libraries themselves have adapted to make up for it overall and people who don't use them (like rich self-centered liberals) never noticed.
When I volunteered with my local big brother type program my buddy always wanted to hang there and do exactly that with a bunch of other 12 year olds. A lot of the time it was even the exact same flash games I had played a decade+ prior.
The only notable difference Minecraft mixed in and videos about GTA Online on youtube.
No manga for the poor kids? Other than that I agree that library has changed to be more of a meeting space rather than completely be about lending of books.
The problem with manga from a library is that its a complete trap.
They'll have a portion of a series, which gets you addicted to it, and then you want to spend money on the rest which you cannot afford and should absolutely spend on something with more lasting usage (reading a volume might get you an hour or so every few months). For the clever ones who learned where to read it online they are fine, but then they don't need the physical editions to begin with.
Not to mention, most manga worth reading is pretty inappropriate for kids. The things that aren't are either way too niche for a small town library or part of a super massive series like Naruto which compounds the prior issue.
Physical books are more enjoyable to read than electronic. And if you read a lot, like a book every week, the cost will add up. 52 books at $15 = $780 per year. A lot of money for a poor person.
Agreed. And if you're an avid reader purchasing your own books, space quickly becomes an issue too.
I prefer to buy my own but that might be a privileged position. There's certainly value in being able to borrow them.
I don't mind electronic for the convenience, but holding the real thing in your hands, and knowing it can't be fucked with by asshole censors, feels good.
I encourage everyone to actually look and see what their library offers these days because it's probably more than just books. Mine allows you to borrow video games and consoles, instruments, and tools. Some local museums and venues have special events where showing a library card gets you discounted admission. And while I doubt anyone here wants to read the fake news, the library's online services let you bypass the paywalls even when you're browsing from home. You can also access some online classes.
Yeah, I was probably a little quick to dismiss libraries.
This guy is still an idiot for his surface-level, smugly self-congratulatory view of them, however. He can't perceive the reality behind the symbol, which is ironic considering he's essentially calling other people dumbasses.
He probably thinks wearing glasses makes someone smart.
I'm sad to say it because I'm fond of them, but who really needs libraries in the internet age anyway? Most people are very literate but hardly anyone reads actual books anymore, and those who do can either buy them cheaply on Amazon or source them elsewhere online.
Aside from that there's, what, borrowing DVDs, reading newspaper archives, and going online if you somehow don't have the internet at home? They do have value as community spaces, but I doubt he's referring to that, and often that value is subverted by using them as staging grounds for propaganda.
Does having a library in a town have any practical role in making its populace more educated, as he implies?
This is actually a great example of how many progressive beliefs are purely performative. I doubt "KP4NC" and his son have stepped inside a library for years. I think they by default believe that saying "Yay libraries!" is the enlightened, sophisticated position and they don't think even a single step beyond that.
(I'm including his son in that because it sounds like they were sniffing their own farts together for the whole trip, which is sad)
It's where the drag queens read to children
My local one is rather great for what it offers kids and teens as a place to hang out and play video games or do other random tasks to keep themselves occupied. Its usually quite full with the poor kids in town who'd never be able to afford a video game. No drag queens yet, so that hasn't been exploited.
I think the original purpose as a book center has long since lost its use, but the libraries themselves have adapted to make up for it overall and people who don't use them (like rich self-centered liberals) never noticed.
My local one is always full of tweens playing
flashHTML5 games on the computers. Some things never change.When I volunteered with my local big brother type program my buddy always wanted to hang there and do exactly that with a bunch of other 12 year olds. A lot of the time it was even the exact same flash games I had played a decade+ prior.
The only notable difference Minecraft mixed in and videos about GTA Online on youtube.
No manga for the poor kids? Other than that I agree that library has changed to be more of a meeting space rather than completely be about lending of books.
The problem with manga from a library is that its a complete trap.
They'll have a portion of a series, which gets you addicted to it, and then you want to spend money on the rest which you cannot afford and should absolutely spend on something with more lasting usage (reading a volume might get you an hour or so every few months). For the clever ones who learned where to read it online they are fine, but then they don't need the physical editions to begin with.
Not to mention, most manga worth reading is pretty inappropriate for kids. The things that aren't are either way too niche for a small town library or part of a super massive series like Naruto which compounds the prior issue.
Physical books are more enjoyable to read than electronic. And if you read a lot, like a book every week, the cost will add up. 52 books at $15 = $780 per year. A lot of money for a poor person.
Agreed. And if you're an avid reader purchasing your own books, space quickly becomes an issue too.
I prefer to buy my own but that might be a privileged position. There's certainly value in being able to borrow them.
I don't mind electronic for the convenience, but holding the real thing in your hands, and knowing it can't be fucked with by asshole censors, feels good.
I encourage everyone to actually look and see what their library offers these days because it's probably more than just books. Mine allows you to borrow video games and consoles, instruments, and tools. Some local museums and venues have special events where showing a library card gets you discounted admission. And while I doubt anyone here wants to read the fake news, the library's online services let you bypass the paywalls even when you're browsing from home. You can also access some online classes.
Yeah, I was probably a little quick to dismiss libraries.
This guy is still an idiot for his surface-level, smugly self-congratulatory view of them, however. He can't perceive the reality behind the symbol, which is ironic considering he's essentially calling other people dumbasses.
He probably thinks wearing glasses makes someone smart.