23.6.09

Ohio Libraries



Yesterday I was informed that the Governor decided it would be smart to cut out much of the funding of libraries in the State of Ohio. What comes to my mind is how elected officials are supposed to be public servants and I was thinking how this is going to serve the people of the state. Is this supposed to stimulate the economy by causing people to buy their books, dvds, and cds? Will he save enough money in the budget to keep paying some salaries of other public officials? Will they buy the employees from the library who are out of work food, clothes, and shelter? That's some real economic stimulus there.
I attended a college that always directed us to visit the Columbus Metropolitan Library for materials and to do research. This saved underprivileged college students a lot of money and allowed all students regardless of resources access to information to do their work. It seems that the only people our government is interested in serving now are those who somehow managed to escape the financial homicide we have been experiencing.
Ok, sorry Mr. Strickland, but I just don't understand completely. I never have made enough money to afford a home, so I didn't buy one. I attended college at the urging of many people and all I got was a pile of debt that will take me the rest of my life to pay off. Now, after our public servants have decided lining their pockets was more important than standing strong for the people in this country, you decide there isn't enough money left for one of the crown jewels of our state; the library. It is a place where people, ALL PEOPLE, can go to indulge themselves in knowledge, information, and entertainment. It stands as a haven for one of the things America stands for; freedom of speech and thought. We can all use it. There is nothing at the door that says you can't come here because you are too poor, too wealthy, or too anything. The message I am getting is that there are going to be a lot more people who are poor in this nation because our government allowed others to take our money and now you want to take away our library, too. We don't deserve this.