Reject Government Libraries

Almost daily at conservative news sites I see stories expressing shock at some new outrage being foisted on the hapless pupils in government schools. Then the emails from various culture-warrior ministries arrive, giving further salient and salacious details, warning me that the end is near unless "we" protect "our" Christian students from these Satanic attacks. Of course, each email is accompanied by a figurative hand sticking out, waiting for the requisite donation.

Though I agree that there is a Satanic stronghold in government-run learning institutions, I think that a bigger problem is the hand out for hand-outs.

One of the shocking stories of last week was that some parents were upset that on the library shelf of their children's elementary school sits a picture book about a pair of "gay" penguins which adopt a fertilized egg, raising the cute little fuzzy chick as their own. The objection to this Arctic tale got a chilly reception from the school superintendent, Ms. Filyaw: "My feeling is that a library is to serve an entire population. It means you represent different families in a society-different religions, different beliefs. That's the role of a school library."

She's right.

Before you write me off as a defector to the dark side, know that I also think she's probably a classic hypocrite – if you scan the shelves of the library at that little elementary school, chances are you won't find (m)any books there that represent the religious beliefs of the majority of families in the school, most of whom (if national statistics regarding religious affiliation are a gauge) would probably claim some brand of Christianity, leaning toward Roman Catholicism in that region.

I decided to look up the propagandistic penguin picture book on my rural county public library's online catalog. Yup, two copies. The shocker for me was that one of the copies was in the little local branch library, just a spell up the road, the library where my children and I used to volunteer and to which I donated several books in the past.

The shock wore off quickly, though, when I started to ponder my reaction and realized that it was just as silly as the sentiment expressed in the emails that want me to help make the democratic government schools safe for Christian children. It is perfectly logical that tax-financed institutions which purport to promote learning as a means of social salvation would lean heavily toward cultural "perversity" if that is the prevailing ideology. In other words, it's no surprise when "public" libraries and "public" schools push garbage on their captive audience. Both institutions are cut of the same moth-eaten cloth.

While many would agree that the government school system is utterly corrupt and not worth keeping on life support, most homeschoolers are aghast when I suggest that government-operated libraries deserve a similar demise. One Charlotte Mason advocate (whose name is misspelled at the beginning of this article), enthusiastically promotes books as essential to a good education, then suggests this brilliant idea:

For the most part, the books you use in any method of home schooling can be obtained from the library at no charge, which is the most economical source for all kinds of books. Incidentally, my ideal library would be a place where we could checkout resources (such as microscopes) and educational tools, and not be limited to printed matter. Let your local lawmaker know that you'd approve of your library expanding its stock to include more hands-on learning tools. Even though it would come out of your taxes, in the long run it may prove more economical to share than to have each household owning its own microscope. (emphasis added)

Did you catch that? She thinks that the government should not only provide free books but free educational tools, as well. And where will the funds come from for this booty? From "your taxes." But the clincher is that the funding for those expensive, politically-correct edifices staffed by paid government employees with graduate degrees in Library and Information Science from liberal universities comes not just from "your taxes," but from your neighbor's, as well.

How well do you know your neighbors? We live in a very nice neighborhood, with a few odd characters to make it interesting. Many of our neighbors are retired. One lady is a widow whose husband died of cancer last year, and she found out recently that she now has cancer. If I went up to her door and demanded that she hand over some cash so I can buy books and lab equipment for my family, I hope the neighbors would run me out of town on a rail. I would deserve the same if I pull such a stunt with the oddball neighbors, too. Yet when there is a local election with a property tax increase on the ballot – taking money from those retired people on fixed incomes – to "benefit" the public library, the Christian homeschoolers come out in force to promote it.

Folks, that money is not yours to take.

It's been referenced so often that it is almost ubiquitous, but for those who may have missed it, or who need a refresher on limited government, take a few minutes to read my ancestor Davy Crockett's essay, Not Yours to Give. He tells about a wake-up call he had when running for re-election to Congress – he realized that other people's pockets were not to be pilfered, even for the best of causes. He points out that those who are so ready to avail themselves of the largesse of others become rather parsimonious if their own purse-strings are involved.

Local libraries are sacred cows for many people, especially homeschoolers. I read a nice blog the other day by a lady who is a wonderful homemaker and very clever about being thrifty. I enjoyed several of her ideas, but when discussing her mission to declutter her home (a mission for which I have great admiration), she talked about paring down her book and CD collections to ascetic proportions, because she could just find what she needed at the local library. I have plenty to say about asceticism and how it is not next to godliness, and how an environment rich with music and books can benefit your children immensely, but I will save that for another time, as this is getting long. The assumption that the tax-financed library should provide those things for one's family is akin to saying government hand-outs are just dandy, as long as they provide for my kind of candy.

How conservative is it to promote limited government, decry pork barrel spending and welfare, criticize tax-funded education, yet avail ourselves of the so-called "free" library? Though it's available to all regardless of race, sex, creed, sexual orientation, or income, public libraries are really just a middle-class entitlement program. They are also a handy venue for corrupting the values of the hapless children whose parents are not careful to protect them from the insidious influences lurking on their shelves. Those bad influences come in many forms, including the socialism that is inherent in the demand for government-financed libraries.

November 21, 2006

Carmon Friedrich [send her mail] is a homeschooling mother of ten in the California gold country. She has a home library with over 12,000 books, and in her spare time she runs a private church library, edits books, and blogs at Buried Treasure.

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