absolute idiocy. here´s a riddle for you all: how do you know what books the library has if the only way you are allowed access to the titles is through an online database located in the library that does not search broad categories (such as, books in english)? i have never heard of such a stupid policy in my life. not only do i have to check out the books i am going to use for my class, i have to physically renew them every two weeks for the next five months. i am not kidding. now, the obnoxious library lady will not even let me into the dinky little room where they might have 1000 books to see what they have. what, am i going to fill my arms and flee the building and campus? the guards would probably shoot me. am i going to set fire to the tiny little collection? she can pat me down before i enter the room and remove an incendiary devices. will i take a magic marker and deface copies of the books, or bring in ten gallons of coffee and just spray it around the room will-nilly?! i am a professor at a university and i had more rights as a four year old at the orange county library. this is beyond ridiculous. the other campus? oh, they can browse through anything they like. hell, they can probably even, gasp, bring a water bottle into the building.
it is so good to know that there are people out there protecting books and keeping them away from students, teachers and the literate public in general. universidad del istmo, ixtepec campus, the alcatraz of library systems: books come in, they don´t go out.
what is better is that this veritable nazi of a librarian sits in her air conditioned shell while the patrons swelter in the heat of the lobby trying to figure out names of books they might, no way to know to for sure, have. does anyone wonder why the library is never used or is the administration pleased by this large, expensive, empty building? truly, this is an enlightened and forward thinking institution. viva méxico.
2 comments:
nice to see you can always find someone to go to war with no matter the language or the country. i'm sure you'll find a way to get even with the librarian. i have confidence. i'm actually teaching about latin america currently. which is funny in itself because i know nothing but what i've read in a few general history books and what i pick up on the news. i still thought my kids might find it interesting to hear about how hugo chavez is ready to fight a 100 year wat with the u.s. (nope) and had enlightening questions as to how the u.s. can help resove some of the economic problems down south. key topics were immigartion and the drug trade. i find it really great that the war on drugs (are we still fighting this one?) has resulted in the destruction/confiscation of more coke last year than ever. we're really giving them hell. spraying the countryside with herbicide and all that. too bad the price of coke is half of what it was in the 80's. it looks like the supply is ok. i say fine though. keep poisoning us. it pays the little man more than farming coffee or flowers or whatever. those poor schmucks in colombia are out protesting a trade agreement with the u.s. for good reason most likely.
happy b-day. when was it? i know you're close to mine.
tim? i assume this is you. my bday was the 19th. happy bday as well. when was yours? 22nd? something like that? glad you are keeping the kids up with information they don´t care about. do they know that in latin america people don´t speak latin (oh how i miss dan q.)?
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