Newsflash

It seems like every few months there is some sort of expose of school or library spending. Well, it's that time again. When I grabbed my soggy Newsday from my front lawn Saturday I opened it to find an article about the different taxes charged in different Long Island communities, and how just because some people pay more it doesn't mean they have a "better" library. You can see the full article here.
I found myself yelling at my dog (the only one who listens) over the paper. Yes, Sachem Public Library serves one of the biggest communities, but just because other libraries have more books does not mean they are misspending their money. Sachem does a dizzying amount of programs, trips and classes. They do so much because that is what their community wants and needs, so more of the budget goes to that department (actually, they have an entire staff devoted to programs, whereas other libraries have their programs coordinated by "reference" librarians, which means programming is not their only job). It is actually a GOOD thing that libraries differ so much. The whole point of a library is to be a community center that caters to its individual community. And on a diverse island such as ours, that means vast differences from community to community, library to library.

This morning's soggy paper yeilded less yelling. An opinion piece by Bob Keeler reminded me that there are patrons out there who will stand up for their libraries. Those who are looking for scandal to fill a newspaper are not patrons, just like those who bellyache about library taxes are not patrons. Community members who use their libraries for books, movies, classes, entertainment and as community centers know what a great bargain they are.