Trump drops the mother of all bombs on libraries

[babylonsister]

Trump drops the mother of all bombs on libraries
By John William Templeton, contributor - 05/01/17 12:40 PM EDT


The most lethal weapon in the Trump administration's arsenal is the attack on truth.

The proposed zero funding for libraries fits into a pattern to "uneducate" the American population. That's a comment I received on Take Action for Libraries Day from a listener on Wisconsin Public Radio.

During Virtual Library Legislative Days May 1-4, let your representatives and senators know how important libraries are to the truth.

Another listener noted that a rural library is Wisconsin has found it necessary to hold an eight-hour course on distinguishing truth. When the White House decides to make its visitor log private and muzzle federal employees, citizens need a neutral place to distinguish between fact and fiction.

Like the zero allocations for the National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Trump's move to eliminate the Institute for Museum and Library Services is the antithesis of what great figures have done throughout history.

Three of the six Carnegie libraries constructed in Los Angeles remain as thriving cultural and intellectual hubs long after his steel mills were shuttered. As the Los Angeles Times has observed in its courageous editorial series, the irresponsibility of this reckless administration is generational in impact. The very amenities that we associate with the civilizations of the past are the libraries, museums, galleries and music.

Make no mistake, the attack on the agencies which promote discourse and diversity of viewpoints is part of a planned assault on such policies as financial services integrity, environmental justice, improved healthcare, education and nutrition and even the right to vote.

more...

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/economy-budget/331362-trump-drops-the-mother-of-all-bombs-on-libraries#.WQhZb2Tru9g.facebook

[Kablooie]

1. The coup is clearly beginning.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

9. It began well before July 2016 when they were already stealing the Electoral College.

What you are seeing now is just Phase 2: testing, softening up, numbing, normalization.

Phase 3, if resistance is weak and doesn't persist, would be a broad Enabling Act, after some kind of incident or provocation from inside or outside of the country.

Phase 4, if resistance doesn't get very widespread and deep, would be detentions, summary justice, martial law. Think Erdogan multiplied by Duterte, aided and abetted by private armies, and jacked up to 11.

[Soxfan58]

10. For more proof

See pic of the moment!!! Squares 1 and 2

[muriel_volestrangler]

2. I can't find out about libraries, but the Congress proposal saves the NEA, NEH and CPR

The new federal spending bill would spare – and even slightly increase – funding for three arts-related agencies that Trump had proposed eliminating: the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities. The 1,600-plus-page bill also would boost funding to fight the heroin and opioid epidemic, providing $3.8 billion to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

https://www.abqjournal.com/996196/federal-budget-plan-includes-50-million-for-art.html

[bitterross]

3. To be Clear. That is Obama's Budget. Not Congress Being Courageous and Useful

Not courageous and useful all on their own I'd say. They really haven't dealt with a Trump budget yet. It's easy to say "Well that was Obama's and it's difficult to change at this late juncture." Wait for the next budget cycle when it's Trump's. Then we'll see who has the interest of the people in mind.

[muriel_volestrangler]

17. Since Obama was known to be stepping down, that doesn't make sense

Obama would not have prepared a budget to be passed after he had stopped being president. Everyone knew there would be a new president, so it wasn't a "late juncture". They'd had 4 years to prepare something.

[Wounded Bear]

24. But this was actually a continuing resolution, not a new budget...

Yes, the numbers do reflect Obama's last budget, which is in effect until Sept 30, 2017.

What Trump and the Repubs tried to do was alter Obama's last budget. The first Trump budget doesn't go into effect until Oct 1, 2017, assuming they can pass one, which is not a given.

[nocalflea]

4. How to make America less competitive in a global economy.

These idiots really do hate our country.
Some of my fondest childhood memories are of trips to the library and to museums . I have yet to see a child enter a library who was not excited to be there and to explore(yeah , I know ,some kids tire, bore easily).
My local library has , like many others, become an internet provider for so many people -a truly great service .

[burnbaby]

13. very true

There was a time I felt no need for libraries because we all have laptops (or so I thought) and could read and do research on anything and everything. Then I became unemployed for a bit, my laptop broke and I went to the library. I had forgotten the euphoric feeling of walking through a library and seeing all those books and the history around the library. Friendly people to help answer questions and of course the computers for public use and to quote you is it "a truly great service"

[MrScorpio]

5. And this is how you create an Idiocracy

Someone should inform Trump that the movie didn't mean to be a documentary.

FDT.

[druidity33]

6. AFAIC...

Inter-Library Loan is the pinnacle of human civilization!

I visit my local library at LEAST twice a week...

K&R

[getting old in mke]

14. Right?

I have been know to define civilized as "being within walking distance of a library."

[niyad]

30. not just walking distance--close enough to carry bags of books. years ago, I used to share

books with a housebound friend, so frequently checked out 40 or 50 at a time.

it always puzzled me that the entire library staff seemed to go on break just as I showed up.. . .

[BlueIndyBlue]

25. Totally agree

I am on a first name basis with my librarians. Luckily I can walk to my neighborhood branch which I visit at the least once a week. I borrow regular books, ebooks and even listen to books on CD on my way to work. I couldn't image life without libraries and the ensuing knowledge that comes from them. Idiocracy indeed!

K&R

[niyad]

31. agree about ILL-- it has gotten to a point where the library staff does not bother to call me--

just raise a hand and point to the ILL stacks when I walk in.

[spanone]

7. make america stupid again

[Ilsa]

8. So IMLS is protected financially through September with

the continuing budget resolution, right? I'm sure Rs would love to destroy it and require Franklin's great gift of public libraries go private.

[Achilleaze]

11. republicans are out to create an Idiocracy for real

and in Comrade Casino, they have the perfect draft-and-fact dodging a-hole to lead them downward.

[exboyfil]

12. Combine with Rep. Sensenbrenner statement "Nobody's got to use the internet"

Libraries have become a key mechanism for individuals who cannot afford home internet service (just like they have always been a key for those who cannot afford books).

These are the same people that say that you don't need to go to college since all the content is on the Internet.

[kaotikross]

15. he's afraid of books and there's suspicion he can't read

he has staffers read him the articles about himself. he shown visible difficultly with reading in video clips. what does he care about places filled with books?

[Augiedog]

16. An informed and educated populace is the single most dangerous element for demagogues.

[Blue_Tires]

29. +1000

[fleabiscuit]

18. K&R

[Mendocino]

19. Remember

Trump loves the poorly educated.

[IronLionZion]

20. Shall we start burning books?

knowledge is dangerous. People need to be easy to control and manipulate.

What an asshole. People use libraries as a low cost place to study and better themselves to get good jobs. Not everyone has thousands of dollars to spend on school when the books are free at the local library. Many city schools don't have funding or space for their own library so they send kids to the public ones.

Were too many minorities reading the books?

If you don't have a library card, sign up for one now as that is used to allocate funding and decide which ones to close. I signed up for a card because of Dolt 45.

[They_Live]

21. Trump's never been to library.

And I have a suspicion that he's never really read a book. Who has time for that with golf and six hours of television a day?

[Historic NY]

22. Wait he tried to get through a page about Andy Jackson....

and look what he found out.....

[IronLionZion]

23. Dude probably can't read

He's been on record as not reading most of the briefings given to him, or even the bills he's signed.

Dems in congress could probably write up some bill with lots of good liberal stuff in it like single payer, full funding of libraries, and free college for low income Americans, put "Build the Border Wall" as the title, and he'll probably sign it into law.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

26. I kind of was expecting to read about Trump dropping literal bombs on libraries some place

Maybe Afghanistan, Libya, N. Korea

[Eyeball_Kid]

27. Two words: President Bannon

[MichMan]

28. How much of the library budget is Federal?

Not convinced that funding local libraries is something that the Federal government should be responsible for. Shouldn't it be a state and local responsibility?

What amount of the libraries budget is being cut? 5%, 25%, 50%?

[sab390]

34. In education it is big

In public libraries there is the LSTA which is small but important. It's not the amount, it's the idea. War gets an increase but children at the library are stiffed. If they cut defense or corporate welfare, then they can come for the library.

[sab390]

32. This is decades old

Remember Reagan bragged he never went into the library in college. He slashed the library funding. 2008 was a horrible time. Library funding is from property tax and the housing collapse crippled it. Pay was cut in half. There was 1000 application for every job. Teaching and librarian used to be middle class jobs. Now they make 30,000. In 1980 65% were middle class. 15% of millennials are. The American dream was "your kids would do better than you"
Now it is get rich quick for yourself. This has all gone to hell.

[Lyricalinklines]

33. He doesn't value books the way many of us do, therefore he won't see preserving funding as necessary