by Tom Hobbs Technology change, some 2,000 years ago, created a need for libraries. Technology change, last year, resulted in them becoming obsolete.
My Kindle eBook reader makes it far more enjoyable and less costly to read than a book. I turn a page by the twitch of a thumb. It remembers where I was in the book. When I go to our hospital’s emergency area I can take it out of my pocket and sit for hours, undisturbed, and read any one of 30 books stored in it. I have not been to our library since I got it as a Christmas present. I used to go weekly and get about six books.
My eTablet lets me access Google Maps. They are more accurate than the maps and charts in our library. The eTablet makes it easier to get and use the map or chart I need. I no longer go to the library for this type of reference material. My eTablet lets me browse the Internet for all my other reference material. I have not used a library to access reference material for over a decade.
My memory stick can store all the books in British Columbia and still have space left for thousands of new books. It is smaller than my finger and cost a few dollars.
Our paper mill, our biggest employer, is fighting for its existence. It is living on borrowed time. Newspapers and TV stations are shrinking because of technology change. Demand for paper is shrinking.
Powell River has a parasitic economy. For decades it has been supported by taxpayers across Canada. We (Canada) cannot afford to build a new library. Those who say it will not cost us much should think about the economic disasters taking place across Europe. This is a direct result of governments foolishly going into debt to please their citizens.
Attention and effort must be on job creation. No jobs, no future for Powell River. The distracting issue of our library is relatively “much ado about nothing.” It, like many of our organizations, is a victim of technology change and is now obsolete.
Tom Hobbs retired to Westview after a career in computer systems engineering operations research.
