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Librarians Join the Fight Against The Patriot Act

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the uncle-sam-taking-our-rights dept.

An anonymous reader writes "This article at the New York Times (free reg.) shows how lots of libraries are moving to destroy privacy related data as quickly as possible and still others have gone as far as posting signs and handing out leaflets to scare / educate their patrons."

2 of 344 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Somebody please explain this to me... by kotj.mf · · Score: 5, Interesting
    We're supposed to ignore this information, why?
    For the same reason you probably don't want your ISP keeping permanent records of every site you've ever visited, ever. Privacy is a necessary component of intellectual freedom.

    See the Library Bill o' Rights for a more concise explanation than I could ever give.

    --kotj.mf, para-professional library drone

    --
    hang brain.
  2. worth a reread by denny_d · · Score: 5, Interesting

    It seems only librarians are able to appreciate the meaning of this:

    [The United States]Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

    Fear of prosecution for reading is the corollary to abridging the freedom of speech.

    In reading the responses of some of the (probably younger) technophiles here at /. who see the end in libraries and librarians forget that there are people who still *use* libraries for their reading materials, reference and enjoyment. Beware /.ers! You scream when your electronic "rights" of privacy are violated but seem far too quick to sacrifice the rights of those who don't fit in your clique of 'libraries are old school, the web is the only way'. Beware the pendulum of opinion, it swings like the sword: both ways.

    Last I checked there were about 85,000 full text books on the web for free. That's less than roughly .02% of all the books ever published.(Correct me if I'm wrong!) I want to go to my library (and web site) and read whatever I like without having the latest incarnation of a Cloaked Big Brother leaning over my shoulder looking for Thought Crimes.