Library Journal - 06/15/2011

Look at these things that caught my attention and here my thoughts thereupon:

• The Problem is Poverty - Editor John Berry opines that we should treat all patrons like people, and that the problem isn't patrons it's poverty that puts them in untenable situations. If we don't work to correct the problem, then we are fighting against ourselves.
  
  
• Georgia State Law Suit - So a bunch of academic publishers are suing Georgia State University, charging that they are breaking the law by making ANY COPIES AT ALL without publisher permission (and fees). The publishers are Oxford Univeristy Press, Cambridge University Pressm, and SAGE. I like this part from Barbara Fister: "Most of the content published by academic publishers is produced by our own faculty and students--it is past time to commit to new models for distributing this content that don't leave it in the hands of rent-seeking, for-profic businesses with no respect for academic values." While I don't know what that would like like, especially in America where capitalism is king, I think it's an interesting idea to foster intellectual discussions this way.
  
  
• U. of Michigan to Identify Hathitrust's Orphan Works - Just interesting because while copyright is out of hand, the orphan works without verifiable copyright-holder are really aggravating to me. (Although for no real reason...just philosophically I guess.)
  
  
• Library of the Year: King County Library System in Washington State - I just found it interesting that the director removed security cameras from the buildings under the auspices of intellectual freedom. Seems like a hobbyhorse, but not an entirely illogical one.
  
  
• The Problem is Not the Homeless - The larger article which inspired the editorial response above. All sorts of innovative services, from book clubs to bringing in Social Workers as staff, etc. We don't really have this as a huge problem in our system, but I think it's interesting that people are willing to innovate to find solutions to people's problems. Talk about public service.
  
  
• 12 Young Adult Authors with Crossover Appeal - M.T. Anderson, Libba Bray, Cassandra Clare, Eoin Colfer, Melissa De La Cruz, Sarah Dessen, Sonya Hartnett, Margo Lanagan, Melina Marchetta, Megan Whalen Turner, Scott Westerfeld, Markus Zusak.