34 posts tagged “personal”

(Crossposted from my professional blog, The Gypsy Librarian).

I bet my four readers at The Gypsy Librarian were expecting the next installment in my small series on blogging mistakes and library blogs (first installment here). I am taking a break today to highlight a very important issue as well as let my four readers know about some of the good work going on in my campus. Ok, this is kind of to let people know where I was last night too. The series will resume next Friday.

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October domestic violence purple_ribbon

 

October has a few observances associated with it. One of those observances is Domestic Violence Awareness Month (link to President Obama's proclamation). Last night I attended a candlelight vigil held on our campus to recognize the issue of domestic violence and to educate people. The event took place at 7:00pm last night in the fourth floor meeting room of the library. They were going to do it outdoors, but the weather did not cooperate. Nevertheless the event was successful, and from a quick glance, I think we had about 50 people or so. We did get some representatives from our campus police, a very strong Greek presence (ladies and gents), and some students. I was the only representative of the library present. The room's lights were down, and the room was lit with candles. At the entrance, there was a display with educational materials.

The event started with an opening statement by Ms. Samantha Dwight, who among her many hats has done work for the Campus Assault Response Effort (CARE) and is an educator/facilitator/presenter extraordinaire on this and other gender issues. She does a bit of everything, so if she reads this I apologize in advance if I can't quite "put her in a slot." At any rate, she read a statement, including a recognition of the important role that law enforcement officers have in domestic violence prevention. Those men and women in uniform when they get a call never know what they may be walking into. So our thanks go to them.

Next, the ladies of Alpha Chi Omega took the stage and did a dramatic reading. Members of the sorority took turns reading statistics and facts related to domestic violence in the nation. This had a moving effect on the crowd, and we learned a thing or two in the process. The last member on stage sang a song.

The activity would come to an end as a prayer was said for the victims as well as those involved in caring for them as well as for us all. And silently the event closed.

Whenever possible, I think it is important for me to attend events like this. In my role as outreach librarian, this is another way for me to reach out to our campus community, another way for the library to say present and that we support the cause. Personally, I just think this is important and needs to be supported. We have a long way to go in educating people, and events like this are a way to do it.

I would like to wrap this up by offering some links and resources that I hope people will find useful. Please, if you happen to be a victim, or you know someone who is, know that there is help out there. Some of the links will include phone numbers and contacts. On our campus here, the folks at C.A.R.E. are one such resource. Need more information, and you are local, you can contact them, or you can contact me, and I will refer you to the right place or find you the information you may need.

The resources then:

• The Domestic Violence Awareness Project. These are the folks who promote and maintain activities for the observance, which started as an awareness "Day of Unity" back in October of 1981. The Project is coordinated by the National Center on Domestic Violence. You can learn about campaigns, find educational materials, and get links, and phone numbers if you need help. Of course, if you are in imminent danger, dial 911.
  
• The National Coalition on Against Domestic Violence. Among the things this organization does, "the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), in conjunction with Ms. Magazine, started the Remember My Name project in 1994 to create a national registry of names of those who have lost their lives to domestic violence. Since then, NCADV has continued to collect information on incidents of people who have been killed by an intimate partner and produces a poster each year for Domestic Violence Awareness Month listing the names of those submitted to the project. To date, over 7,753 people have been memorialized through the project." Names are added daily to the list, which you can view on the website.
  
• The U.S. Department of Justice has an Office on Violence Against Women. In addition to listing national hotlines, the site contains a lot of good information, including statistics.
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture has a handbook on domestic violence awareness. This seems geared to employers so they can be supportive in the workplace. Provides some good information.
• The National Domestic Violence Hotline. The number is 1−800−799−SAFE (7233) or TTY 1−800−787−3224. Their contact form can also be used to get assistance if you prefer, though they encourage calling more. You can also find some information on the site.
  
• The National Youth Violence Prevention Center also has resources related to the observance here. Yes, it is not just spouses or significant others; children and youths in families where an abusive situation exists suffer too.
• The Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN) is also a good resource.
• In Texas, the Attorney General has some resources here. A bit more geared to sexual assault, but still good information.
• There is also a Texas Council on Family Violence.
• Locally, you have the good folks of the East Texas Crisis Center. If you need help locally, this is a place to go.
  

This small list is certainly not comprehensive. I have tried to put out some resources that I have looked over and seem to provide good information. Readers are invited to comment, respond, and if they have other suggestions for links, add in the comments as well.

And yes, I tagged the post under "celebrations and holidays." It is not because I think domestic violence is to be celebrated; it is not. But this is also about a monthly observance, which is what I use the tag for. Just to be clear.

The title may be a bit misleading; we may need to think about this a bit more often. But I find myself noticing these stories now because Pride Month is celebrated in June. Some of these links are things I would not mind adding to posts at the library's blog, but we do need to maintain a certain decorum over there. And since I don't quite have enough for a well-thought out piece on my main blogs, I am posting the links over here. So this is kind of like additional notes to go with some of the work I have done already on the topic.

• First, I found this essay about being gay in academia. This is definitely a must read. If you are gay and going into an academic career (read becoming a professor), there are some good points to consider. This may also be something that administrators need to read as well. Found via Inside Higher Ed. Also via Inside Higher Ed, a note on a recent study about sexual orientation and the college experience. The article is by Christopher Carpenter, and it is published in the journal Economics of Education Review (2009). Title: "Sexual Orientation and Outcomes in College." I am not linking since it is an Elsevier journal, but I am sure you can get it via your library.
  
• Pharyngula, one of my favorite irreverent blogs, has a couple of things. One, he makes a brief response to clerics who think there is such a thing as Moral DNA. He also points to the recent ridiculous advertisements against same-sex marriage by the National Organization for Marriage (NOM). He has the clip over here. Why the hell some people feel a need to use religion to justify their bigotry and ignorance is beyond me. It's an issue of basic civil and human rights.
  
• And John Aravosis at AmericaBlog points to his friend David Lee ". . .On the need to stand up to religious bigots." I think this is certainly well written, and it is something I agree with. It is time we stop giving religion a free pass when it comes to bigoted and ignorant behavior. And we certainly need to stop giving a free pass to so-called "moderates" who defend their bigoted brethren, or worse, stay silent thus giving the bigots tacit approval. 
• And on the military front, it seems conservatives may be shifting to favor openly gay service members, according to Gallup. This would be in the U.S. Other nations in the world have no problem with the idea. 

I do know by now that trying to discuss anything with anyone who is tied to a certain belief system, and likely fundamentalist, is pretty much a waste of time. They are not going to change their minds no matter what facts and evidence you present, and more often than not, you end up upset. And yet, to be perfectly honest there are moments when you just have to confront, or at least say something, to people who pretty much espouse evil. Allow me to expand a little on the matter.

In some other social network that I use, a friend of mine posted a link to the recent story that President Obama was going to sign the United Nations' gay rights document. It is a good step, but as we all know, a lot of people would not agree with the notion of gay marriage. My friend ended up getting a long comment stream, which basically became a fiery debate on the issue of gay marriage. I am saying "fiery," but it was more like some people with certain religious values who feel they can pretty much repress anyone else who does not agree with them. I did say my peace, so to speak at one point, but at times I wonder if one is better off not saying anything.

Then I came across this story as I was doing my feeds scan. AmericaBlog pointed to a story about an Anglican bishop in Nigeria who is advocating prison terms for gay people (among other not so nice measures). If you follow the link, you can find the actual document from the bishop. The interesting for me is, if you replace "Africa" and "Nigeria" in the right places with "United States" and "America(n)," it could read like the screed of any fundamentalist, right winger in the United States. But what made me think was what John Aravosis wrote in his post for AmericaBlog,

"At some point, the leadership of the normal wing of the Anglican church had better wake up and realize that by appeasing evil, and bigotry, and hate, they are no better. Jesus said to turn the other cheek, he didn't say to stand idly, repeatedly giving your blessing to the evil in your midst. The leaders of the progressive wing of the Anglican church have enabled this nut from Nigeria, and now his hate and bigotry, his evil, is theirs."

At some point, the "normal" people of this nation (and most other nations) better be waking up to the evil in their midst. Bigotry and discrimination, whether justified by politics or religion, are evils, and as such do need to be fought and confronted. For me, this tends to guide my thinking: "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing." By the way, a lot of people attribute the quote to Edmund Burke, but it is not found in his works; it is likely a paraphrase, albeit a good one. When one of the other commenters in my friend's post was all about taking away rights of gay people because his religious views said it was fine, it irked me to say the least. When he pulls the classic rhetoric of "it's not in the Constitution," well, I just want to laugh because at that point I just know the guy is not doing his homework, let alone read not only the Constitution but also other very relevant documents and history as well. Personally, to me, it is a matter of basic human rights and one of common decency. There is a reason there is a separation of church and state, and unlike that fellow's "it's a liberal myth" view (the church-state separation), the reality is that it is there precisely to protect everyone, the majority and the minority. If one takes the time to read the works of the writers of the Constitution, reading past the First Amendment (basis for the idea of separation), one sees that they did indeed intend for said separation. For example:

• Thomas Jefferson, working on the then new Virginia Constitution, around the same time the U.S. one was getting done: "All persons shall have full and free liberty of religious opinion; nor shall any be compelled to frequent or maintain any religious institution": freedom for religion, but also freedom from religion." Ooh, did I just see that "freedom from religion" idea that certain person denied existed?
  
• Jefferson, further writing in his "Notes on the State of Virginia:" "The legitimate powers of government," he wrote, "extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg."
• Jefferson writing to his nephew Peter Carr, in 1787: "Question with boldness even the existence of a god because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear" This may be worth reading in full.
  
• A little something on the dangers of the majority oppressing the minority, here is James Madison writing to Thomas Jefferson in a letter of October 1788 as they were working on the Constitution: "Wherever the real power in a Government lies, there is the danger of oppression. In our Governments, the real power lies in the majority of the Community, and the invasion of private rights is chiefly to be apprehended, not from the acts of Government contrary to the sense of its constituents, but from acts in which the Government is the mere instrument of the major number of the constituents."
  
• John Adams spoke of equality (granted, it was mostly for white landowners, but we have, thankfully, moved on the broaden the definition of equality) writing to a Dr. Price: "We should begin by setting conscience free. When all men of all religions ... shall enjoy equal liberty, property, and an equal chance for honors and power ... we may expect that improvements will be made in the human character and the state of society."
  
• And this one is pretty clear. It comes from Isaac Backus, "An Appeal to the Public for Religious Liberty," 1773: "Religious matters are to be separated from the jurisdiction of the state not because they are beneath the interests of the state, but, quite to the contrary, because they are too high and holy and thus are beyond the competence of the state."
  

I could go on with this for longer, but I think we can safely show that the Founding Fathers did intend for there to be a separation of church and state. They just figured that people would be smart enough to know it from things like that First Amendment. When some less well read people say, "we don't know what they intended," a little reading counters that right away. And that is just one example.

So why does this even make me wonder? Well besides the fact that I have no tolerance for bigots who use their beliefs to justify all sorts of atrocious behavior, being a librarian means I am an educator. And I am someone who takes the role of educating others seriously. Quotes like the one found in Boston's Public Library,

"THE COMMONWEALTH REQUIRES THE EDUCATION OF THE PEOPLE AS THE SAFEGUARD OF ORDER AND LIBERTY".

Maybe I am wondering due to my recent readings on library neutrality. Or maybe sometimes people of reason do have to say something. Sure, people may hold different opinions, and they have the right to express them. But at the end of the day, when they try to pass their opinion as facts, and they try to use them justify their bigotry, then that has to be confronted. If you tolerate it and accomodate it, it is just going along with something that is wrong. It is easy to simply go along on the false logic that, if you go along now, they may be nice to you next time. The hard act, and the just one, is to speak up and shoot down the bigotry.

Anyhow, food for thought.

I often describe myself as someone with a "live and let live" attitude. If there is something I can't tolerate it is oppressive and pushy people who think their rights, and only their rights and views, are the only valid ones and are more than happy to trample on everybody else. I am looking at a lot of you religious fundamentalist nuts out there and their enabling brethren for example. I honestly do not care what it is you practice or preach as long as you keep it to yourself and don't try to convert me, or worse, to give up my rights and freedoms because your big fairy in the sky tells you to. Guess what? I don't have a big fairy in the sky telling me to do it, so please, keep it to yourself. I will be happy to mind my own business in the meantime. Is it really that hard to respect the rights of others and get others to respect mine? I don't have all the answers, but J.D. Tucille considers it in his post on "you respect my rights and I will respect yours." From the post:

"It comes down to the same thing: When liberty is under attack, everybody is at risk. But that's not what the politicians and inspectors and tax collectors and police officers say, of course. No, they're all too happy to tell you that the queers next door are a threat to your way of life, or that the gun nuts are a public danger, or that the tax dodgers are greedy and not doing their fair share, or the store keepers are running amuck without entangling red tape, or that the pot heads are lazy parasites who will corrupt your kids.

But once the politicians and inspectors and tax collectors and police officers are done with the queers, they'll happily shift their sights to the gun nuts, then to the tax dodgers, the store keepers, and then the pot heads, and ...

Where were you planning to hide? Forget about it. Because you're some kind of menace, too, and you'll be fresh out of allies if you don't realize that the freedom of people you don't care very much about is just as important as your own."

This is what a lot of people do not get, and it is the reason that I believe quite firmly in defending the rights of others. Because in the long run, if you do not, when the oppressors come after me, there will be no one left to help defend me. In a way, it is a matter of self-interest to me. You help me out, and I will help you out. And I may not agree with a lot of stuff, but I do agree with their right to express it (again, as long as you are not trying to impose it on me, go wild). At one point, my father and I were talking, and he wondered out loud how come his boys turned away from the religion they were raised with. For the record, I was raised Roman Catholic, and I am no longer practicing. In fact, I am happily going along as a spiritual but not religious person. He was fairly mellow, saying he was not going to ask me why, that it was my thing, but it made me think. And at the end of the day, this is certainly one of the issues that convinced me to get away from religion and seek my own path: that more often than not religion is more interested in suppressing the rights of others in order to carry out whatever their agenda is; in extreme cases, they do things like what the Catholic Church recently did in Brazil in relation to a young 9 year old girl getting raped. Pharyngula has been following the story, and I have to say, it is definitely a fine illustration of what I have been saying. What they don't get is that they will be a threat to someone as well down the road, and then who will they be allied with when the oppressors come around for them?

Just one of the things I keep in mind now and then. 

Oh, and by the way, that Examiner site where the article comes from looks interesting. I may have to take a look around.

Steven Bell had an interesting post over at the DBL Blog asking "Does UX Still Matter in Tough Economic Times." He looks at Starbucks as an example. I have to wonder about that example because, if one looks at the company, at the end of the day Starbucks is simply the case of a company that got away from their user experience. They tried to be a lot of different things to different people, and they lost their way. That, at least based on studies and tests, their coffee gets beaten by the likes of McDonald's and Dunkin Donuts certainly sends the wrong message. Starbucks, as I understand it, grew on the basis of providing a unique exclusive coffee experience where baristas would actually make your luxurious coffee right then and there. Once the company started doing things like using a push button machine instead of a more traditional espresso machine, it was down hill from there. I mean, the kid at Mickey D's can push a button just as well as the guy at Starbucks. I mean, there is a reason why no Starbucks barista has ever won at the barista world competitions, as this story from the NYT points out.Then came the breakfast sandwiches to compete with Dunkin Donuts, sandwiches which were pretty much panned and then Starbucks got rid of them to stem the bleeding. The point is not to slam Starbucks. The point is that their woes, while partially due to the economy, are mostly due because they got away from their core user experience. Once their cheaper competition was able to offer something comparable, Starbucks lost what made them unique. Why would I pay $4-$6 for a decent cup of coffee when I can get it for less at the Dunkin Donuts or Mickey D's? In the interest of disclosure, I will say that I don't get my coffee at either Starbucks or the fast food joints. I prefer to make my own at home. If I buy coffee to drink then and there, I prefer to go to some local place where I know an actual barista will put some work on making a special drink.

The point eventually is to ask if UX (user experience, for those who may wonder) is relevant to libraries. I would say the answer is yes, and I would say we can very easily fall victim to the mistakes Starbucks has made that they are now paying for dearly. And given the tight economy, and the fact that funding for libraries is shrinking at abysmal rates at a time when we need libraries the most, a good service experience will probably make some difference. Notice I say some difference. You can have the greatest service experience, but if you still lack materials and resources inside your pretty building with the very helpful staff, you will end up on the losing end. Yes, you have to provide a good experience, but you also need to have a good product. For libraries, that is pretty much the dual need: good service and items people want. We can leave the "want or need" debate for another time. The reason I say that is because news are often filled with the feel-good stories about libraries providing free books, A/V, computers, etc. for their patrons, like this story out of the Boston Globe or this one from MSNBC (via Libraries and Life). That is all nice and dandy but you have to have the products (good books in good condition, A/V that people actually want to check out and watch, so on. This could be a separate rant, but I will restrain myself). So, is UX relevant? Yes, but being nice alone is not going to do it. Much like Starbucks now trying to sell instant coffee. Instant? Really? Maybe they need to get back to basics and concentrate on what they once did well: creating a good experience around a good cup of coffee. And maybe some libraries need to get back to basics as well instead of worrying over the frills. Just a thought.  

Marc Fisher, of the Washington Post's Raw Fisher blog, asks "What if they built new libraries and couldn't afford to let folks use them?" in his post about D.C. Libraries' new 25 million dollar construction. Mr. Fisher is looking at how the DC libraries can afford to build a big new building, but they have to cut back hours and staff due to, you guessed it, lack of funds. Mr Fisher explains this apparent contradiction: "Welcome to the wonderful world of government spending, where capital budgets exist in a separate universe from operating dollars, meaning that you can build a building and then find yourself barely capable of using that building."

I was going to leave a small comment on his blog, but it is one of those blogs that require registration to comment, something I personally find annoying. And please, don't bother pointing out the irony of the fact Vox does the same registration b.s. for commenting. I did not make the rules on that one, and it does annoy me. Anyhow I am digressing.

What I was going to say is that Mr. Fisher may want to take a look at academia. My current workplace is a pretty good example of the same apparent contradiction he describes. My library is getting a very nice garden and water monument in front of the building. However, we lack funds for basics like buying books. And while we are hiring, we are only doing so because of accreditation issues. If it was up to us, we would not be hiring since the state system did put a hiring freeze in place. So, how come we are getting a million dollar or so aesthetic piece in front of our building when we can barely keep the inside? Welcome to the wonderful of world of university (and nonprofit) wealthy donors. In essence, the university got some anonymous donor. By the way, it seems most of the time these people do want to remain anonymous. Maybe a little shame they may be asked about their vanity? I mean, we could certainly use money for books, scholarships, etc. instead of a big fountain or a big phallic clock tower (yep, we got one of those too). So, that is how it works. And that is not just here. This is the second college I have worked at where some anonymous donor wanted to give money for a big phallic tower clock. Yes, they are pretty much phallic time pieces because they are designed to stand out straight and proud and to be seen from miles away. In academia, the hope often is that, if we sweet talk one of those donors to give money for something vain, like a fountain, they may be moved later to give money for something practical like books. To be honest, I would love to see some study done where we can find out if that glimmer of hope works or not. In the end, the situation in academia, especially in small colleges like mine, is a reflection of states basically abdicating their role to properly fund public higher education. We have to find the money any way we can. I am not saying it's right, but that's the way it is.
 

There were a few things that I would have liked to try out as part of the September Project, but there is only so much time in the day. These are kind of ideas that I jotted down, but I never took far. One or two I may try to do next year.

• I would have liked to have a speaker for Constitution Day. Either a speaker, or maybe some kind of debate around issues of civil rights. I wonder if I could take advantage of the fact we have student organizations for the Democrats and the Republicans on campus. Maybe they would be interested in providing debaters and partner with us. If I could get a professor in political science (or a related area) to moderate, could be a nice idea.
  
• A program or speaker on a topic addressing post 9/11. One sample topic: Democracy/Democratic Governance in the U.S. Another sample topic: "Why I blog and why you should blog." This could be supplementary. We did get a speaker for our film showing, so we now have a start.
  
• Exhibits: We did get some exhibits, but I always have other ideas. One big idea, and this we can consider for next year, was trying to get the "Eyes Wide Open and the Cost of War" exhibit for our campus. I think this could be a powerful exhibit and encourage conversations on campus. This is definitely something to inquire about.
  
• Exhibit on the topic of the "The Othe September 11." This would be September 11, 1973, which is when Pinochet's coup, backed by the CIA, happened in Chile.
  
• Continue showing other films related to the month and events. Showing "Good Night and Good Luck" worked well, even with the small crowd. I am thinking we can show other films. We have available "Fahrenheit 9/11," "World Trade Center," and "United 93" for instance.
  
• I wanted to create a pretty good pathfinder on 9/11 and Terrorism (or something similar in terms of topic). It would incorporate books, resources, and websites. While I have been posting the book lists for books in our displays, making the pathfinder itself was something I just ran out of time on. On the positive, I do have pathfinders I have created on this topic on file. So, modifying one or two to meet needs here would be possible. Again, time was a big obstacle. That, and I am not sure about interest level. We could put it in a new LibGuide (I have seen other campuses do it that way). We'll see. Right now, LibGuides has been a bit of an object of contention locally that I would rather not deal with now.
  
• For the films, have some popcorn, or at least some cookies and soda, or something to munch on.
  
• Serving as voting registration site would have been a good idea. I may have to give this some thought, but not as much of a rush since next year is not an election year. 

These are just some ideas. The September Project website always has many others. Anyhow, this year went pretty well considering it was our first time. I am already looking forward to next year.

My workplace is participating in the September Project (ok, I have mostly dragged them into doing it, but that is a separate story). Anyhow, we had a film showing, with a decent turnout if you ask me considering some of the obstacles we had to overcome. And we made a book display related to learning about the world after 9/11. I also made a list of the books featured inside the display, which I posted to my workplace's blog. At any rate, there were some book titles that I would have liked to either feature on the display case or add to the book list that I did not put in for a few reasons. For one, we did not have the books in the library. Now ordinarily, that would not stop me. If I thought the book was important, and it was or else I would not be writing about it here, I could have just told people to get the book in question via Interlibrary Loan. Two, these are actually books that I have personally read. You would think that it would be appropriate to put them on the list since I have personally read them, and therefore, I can vouch for those books. In fact, for a couple of the titles I left out, I even blogged about them in my personal blog. So, it would have been perfect since I could have linked to those posts. However, the topic of September 11, not to mention Constitution Day, which is in September (and for which we are making displays as well), can be a bit volatile. Some of my book reviews have some opinions which may or not (ok, probably not) go along with the red conservative mindset predominant in the little East Texas town I work. Do I think people should be reading the books I left out? Absolutely. But in the end, I don't think it is worth it to make a fuss because one of two things could happen. One, someone will see the additional items, follow a link to a post of mine with a strong opinion, feel (easily) offended, then gripe to some administrator. Not that I give a hoot if they gripe or not, but I don't need my boss coming down on me asking questions. Not worth the hassle. Actually, that is the scenario I would like to happen. In reality, odds are good no one would notice, and it would be an effort for naught. Such is life. It's moments like this when I wish I could be back in an actual library instruction position so I could be working with students instead of trying to do PR work that a significant number of the campus population does not appreciate. But I disgress.

So, what did I leave out. Here they are, in no particular order. Title links go to the WorldCat record so you can find them at your local library or demand they get it for you:

• The Great Derangement: a terrifying true story of war, politics, and religion at the twilight of the American empire. I briefly wrote about it at The Itinerant Librarian here. I am sure that mentioning megachurches in a less than flattering light in this part of Texas would not go well in the library's official blog. And that is just one chapter of the book.
  
• Rogue State: A guide to the world's only superpower. I wrote about it at The Itinerant Librarian here. This is the book that made it to "Osama's Book Club." If you don't get the reference, it is explained in the post I linked. Somehow booktalking from "Osama's Book Club" is not as sexy as "Oprah's Book Club." Here is a bit of what I wrote in my personal blog back then: "In seriousness, I figured that if the great villain is reading something, I ought to take a look at it, so I did." Such a radical idea, huh?
  
• Crossing the Rubicon: the decline of the American Empire at the End of the Age of Oil. I wrote about it at The Itinerant Librarian here.
• Dying to Kill: The Allure of Suicide Terror. I wrote about it at The Itinerant Librarian here.

And speaking of Osama, I happen to think that it could be a good idea to maybe read some of the things the guy along with Al Qaeda has said and/or written. On the display, I did feature the book Al Qaeda In Its Own Words. Not a bad choice, and for me, it was the only one we had in the library. However, I knew there were at least two others that we probably should have, but we currently do not. The two I would add are:

• What Does Al-Qaeda Want? Unedited Communiqués. I wrote about it on The Itinerant Librarian here. This is a pretty short book, with some commentary to the texts. I think it is a very accessible way to get a sense of what Al Qaeda wants. And no, they don't hate us for our freedoms; they may not like our freedoms and values, but they don't hate us for them. Then again, a lot of fundamentalists and dominionists in this country don't like our freedoms either, but let's not go there now. By the way, the post I linked also mentions a couple of other items I read that could fit on the reading list.
  
• Messages to the World: the Statements of Osama Bin Laden. I did not blog about this one, but I briefly reviewed in my GoodReads list (my GR profile is linked on the right column of this blog). Anyhow, a bit more comprehensive than the previous book.
  

One more thing I wanted to link to someplace are the excellent reading lists provided by the American Association of University Presses. Under their section "Books for Understanding," the AAUP provides excellent lists of books on various topics in the news and current events as well as civil rights.The thing that bummed me out, so to speak, is that I pulled their list on 9/11, and we lacked pretty much most of the titles. What little we did have was in the form of e-books, which is fine other than the fact that it makes them mostly inaccessible. I say that because offering a student an e-book on a topic is pretty much like pissing on their oatmeal, as the adage goes. Yes, I have had students basically say to me, "oh, you mean you don't have a real book?" I have my work cut out for me, but here we have seen fit to follow the trend of getting as much in electronic format as humanly possible (that's another story for another day). One or two may be ok with the idea (and distance students are mostly ok with it), but overall, students here want an actual book. Plus, I can't put an e-book in a display case. Anyhow, the "Books for Understanding" is an excellent resource I cannot recommend highly enough. Looking it over, if we add a couple other things, this by itself would not be a bad list. Just a thought.
  

If I have said it once. . .,  you get the idea. The library sector of the blogosphere is notorious for the little seasonal memes. The leadership meme is one of them. The one about ALA and whatever it is not doing for librarians is another. The Emerging Leaders program ALA runs is another of those memes: application time comes up. Someone puts up their reasons for not applying, and it will likely create a snowball effect. I am not trying to be less than serious, but this again another example of stuff that just comes around every year. If you don't believe me, here are a couple of things I had to say on the program a while back. It seems some things stay the same: there is some complaining, then it quiets down until the following year when it comes back again. Now, I am not going into the MLS versus non-MLS people debate that one of those posts is bringing up. I have my opinions, and I will keep them to myself. But the point about the program just being for the elite few who can afford conference attendance is certainly something to consider. Or not. Let's look at those requirements for the program, shall we?

1. Be under 35 years of age or be a new librarian of any age with fewer than 5 years post-MLS experience, and
2. Have a recent MLS degree from an ALA or NCATE accredited program or be in an MLS program currently, and
3. Be able to attend both ALA conferences and work virtually in between each,
4. Be prepared to commit to serve on an ALA, Division, Chapter or Round Table committee, taskforce or workgroup upon completion of program, and
5. Be an ALA member or join upon selection if not already a member.
   

First of all, I am already a wee bit older than 35. I am going into my 4th post-MLS year (dang, how time flies). I did not apply last year. I sure as heck won't apply this year, and I probably will not next year. By then, I will have more than the 5 years of post-MLS experience, which will disqualify me. I guess by then I would not be worthy of learning whatever "wisdom" on leadership the organization wishes to impart on the select few. Next, well, I do have an MLS degree. No, I am not attending the conferences (too damn expensive. I could not go with a straight face to my boss and ask to get funding. Lack of funding being one of the reasons). Commitment to service? Yes, I certainly have that. Be an ALA member? That could be a problem. I have not renewed my ALA membership in a while, and from the looks of it, I probably won't anytime soon. In brief, time will probably pass me by, so to speak. Not really too concerned. I just wish the meme would simply go away.

I am not sure where my thinking is headed on this topic, which is why I am posting it here and not on one of the main blogs. Because I wonder if this more of the notion of leadership as either you have it or you don't. I do not find the idea of a "librarian pop idol" to be particularly appealing, but that is me (go look at the link and this will make sense). And in the end, it reminds me, once again, of one of the small notions of leadership I try to live by. This one by Lao-Tzu:

"Superior leaders get things done with very little motion. They impart instruction not through many words, but through a few deeds. They keep informed about everything but interfere hardly at all. They are catalysts, and though things would not get done as well if they were not there, when they succeed they take no credit. And, because they take no credit, credit never leaves them."

Wayne Bivens-Tatum had a interesting suggestion in his post "Everyone Needs a Librarian." In many ways, he outlines the role that I think instruction librarians (and librarians in general) should be playing in their academic libraries and campuses at large. I have to admit I fall a bit on the cynical camp; I have come to believe that over time, while persons can be intelligent, people as a whole are skittish, paranoid, and just plain stupid. If you need any more evidence, just look at the guy they elected to run the country (not once, but twice). The point is that I am not sure that even with librarians helping people see better evidence and thus be better informed, that people would go on to make better decisions. I would like to think so; it is a big reason for why I do what I do, but I have my doubts. And I am so waiting for someone to prove me wrong when it comes to what I have come to believe about people. Because it's not like the evidence is not there. Sure, people may need some help finding it, and that is where we come in, but at the end of the day, if they refuse to believe it and act on it, instead choosing to keep embracing their stupidity, well, there is no amount of librarians who are going to fix that. As a wise man once said, "you can't fix stupid." Does this sound mean? Of course it does. But I am betting a lot of people will not even notice. And there lies the problem.