L.a. public library maker space

Many libraries are government run, however it’s primarily a local commission, either by the city or the county it resides in. Libraries are not the means of production or the distribution of goods, simply a service to the public. Libraries also aren’t exclusive to societies without private property, nor under a state which controls all said property.

Seeing as libraries are neither the means of production, and have existed much longer than the socialist ideology, one can conclude that they are not socialist in themselves. They can exist within socialist societies, but they are not a prerequisite nor a defining factor of socialism.

Sadly politics has corroded almost all aspects of our daily lives.  Inspection of tax spending is a fair topic, but libraries are barely a footnote on budgets.

JR

libraries are just good things

okgb said:

libraries are just good things

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usually, but we have a couple here I wouldn't want to set foot in, too many vagrants doing as they please. nothing like turning a library into a human toilet

pucho812 said:

Many libraries are government run, however it’s primarily a local commission, either by the city or the county it resides in. Libraries are not the means of production or the distribution of goods, simply a service to the public. Libraries also aren’t exclusive to societies without private property, nor under a state which controls all said property.

Seeing as libraries are neither the means of production, and have existed much longer than the socialist ideology, one can conclude that they are not socialist in themselves. They can exist within socialist societies, but they are not a prerequisite nor a defining factor of socialism.

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^ This right here.

I'm pretty damn far left in most of my opinions social and economic (I live in a large, old, east coast city and like it, so of course I am) and none of my hackles raise over the term socialism, but libraries don't produce anything and they predate socialism as a defined idiology. Calling them socialist or implying that not recognizing them as socialist because there is some minority advocating a "capitalist" alternative that would see them defunded strikes me as needlessly political. They're a tool. I don't call the table saw in my basement capitalist either.

Pushing some political idiology onto libraries in the current political climate might get people to like socialism is far more likely to get half the country hating libraries, because that's what happens every damn time something gets politicized*. Most peoples' entire identity is wrapped up in their politics so deeply that it's becoming impossible to have nuanced opinions on anything, because everyone's constantly being trained by online feedback loops to align their opinions with their voting patterns and not the other way around.

*You know how hard it is to be an apolitical folk songwriter? JFC. I miss the days when it was impolite to ask someone about their religion or politics.