Preserving the Sound of America

jonerik writes "The Associated Press (by way of MSNBC) has this article on the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry, which 'seeks to ensure even greater protection for some of the most notable songs, speeches and other utterances.' To that end, the library's extensive collection of recordings and photos will soon be moved to a massive 41-acre complex built into the side of a mountain in Culpeper, Virginia. When construction on the site is completed - in about three years - anything stored in Culpeper should be available via computer at the library's Madison Building on Capitol Hill. The Library of Congress has been collecting recordings for almost 100 years, the first being a recording of a speech by German Emperor Wilhelm II. Since then the library has collected recorded speeches by every American President since Theodore Roosevelt, oral histories, music, radio broadcasts, and other examples of recorded sound." This sounds like a collection which will become more valuable as more people have access to the actual content of the collections.

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My complaint about the Library of Congress

[SlashdotComplainer]

Once again, I am writing in response to the Library of Congress's ventures, and once again, I merely wish to point out that the Library of Congress has no standards of decency. Instead of focusing on why thanks to the Library of Congress, gruesome political movements are experiencing a resurgence around the world, I would like to remind people that it's astounding that the Library of Congress has somehow found a way to work the words "physiologicoanatomic" and "theologicohistorical" into its complaints. However, you may find it even more astounding that its claim that a totalitarian dictatorship is the best form of government we could possibly have is not only an attack on the concept of objectivity, but an assault on the human mind. Looking at it another way, the Library of Congress's morbid rodomontades can be quite educational. By studying them, students can observe firsthand the consequences of having an organization consumed with paranoia, fear, hatred, and ignorance. Often, the lure of an articulate new pundit, a well-financed attention-getting program, an effective audience generator, hot new "inside" information, or a professionally produced exposé is irresistible to feral doofuses who want to create an ideological climate that will enable the Library of Congress to pit the haves against the have-nots. The Library of Congress could use a heavy dose of sensitivity training. Of that I am certain, because given the amount of misinformation that the Library of Congress is circulating, I must decidedly point out that it is a tremendous deadweight on our will and morale. The Library of Congress will almost certainly tiptoe around that glaringly evident fact, because if it didn't, you might come to realize that whenever there's an argument about its devotion to principles and to freedom, all one has to do is point out that widespread fascism is the price we'd pay for making "counterdisengagement" a dirty word. That should settle the argument pretty quickly. With this in mind, I must give the Library of Congress a rhadamanthine warning not to hurt others physically or emotionally. I have seen and heard enough. Now, it is time to condemn -- without hesitation, without remorse -- all those who conjure up dirt against its fellow human beings.

For the record, the Library of Congress decries or dismisses capitalism, technology, industrialization, and systems of government borne of Enlightenment ideas about the dignity and freedom of human beings. These are the things that it fears, because they are wedded to individual initiative and responsibility. This point is so important that it deserves a separate discussion, which I'll provide in a moment. We must remove our chains and move towards the light. (In case you didn't understand that analogy, the chains symbolize the Library of Congress's obstinate viewpoints, and the light represents the goal of getting all of us to draw an accurate portrait of its ideological alignment.) The whole thrust of the Library of Congress's Ponzi schemes bothers me. That's all I have to say. Thank you for reading this letter.