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Letters to the Editor
Costly To Preserve the Past
Dear Sirs:
I read with interest the recent suggestion by a writer to the Review that
the Bay County Library System might be better served by finding lodging in
existing buildings around Bay City. As President of the Friends of the Bay
County Libraries, I have observed the library administration over the last
decade as they have wrestled with the problems of bringing the Bay County
libraries into the the 21st Century.
It has been a long and thoughtful process, full of necessary compromise.
In it, almost every one of the Mr. Korkorski's suggestions has been given
serious consideration and each has been found wanting in some serious way.
Some lack parking, some are not centrally located, some lack sufficient
area, some are undoable for valid political reasons,some are simply
unavailable, many lack the necessary structural integrity and most would be
far too expensive to convert to a modern central library.
It is a noble goal to preserve the best of past architecture and make it
useful in the present. But it isn't always easy and it is rarely cheap. It
was abundantly clear in a recent discussion of the challenges involved in
updating Sage Library that providing handicap access, room for computers,
study room, security, and reasonable parking without altering the essential
character of that historic building was, to put it mildly, a difficult
balancing act. And Sage was originally designedas a library. Converting a
building that wasn't even intended to handle the mere weight of the books,
something requiring a load carrying capacity of perhaps three times that of
required for schools or commercial space, much less provide the technical
infrastructure of a modern library, is often simply not feasible.
Not all of the past can be preserved. We have to make judgements about
what is worth preserving, what buildings connect us to a valuable heritage
and what buildings only serve to bind us to ways of doing things which are
no longer workable. In the proposed plan for improving the library system
I think the staff, the board, and the architects for the Bay County Library
System have reached a commendable and workable compromise between these
extremes.
Sincerely,
John VanLooy
Essexville
Noted Local Activist Speaks Out Against Government AbusesS
Dear Bob;
Why are government officials allowed to use IRS as a tool against political
adversaries?
After raising hell with the establishment on a broad range of environmental
and societal issues (ie. stopping hazardous chemical contaminations of our
land, food, air, and water; recycling; blocking the Exxon/Mobil merger;
pushing for IRS reforms; curbing Postal Service abuses; forcing cleanups of
contaminated sites; restoring Justice to the US Justice Department) IRS
forced me into poverty by seizing/garnishing all the fruits of my labors,
except for $7,200 per
year ($20 per day).
The American Dream is DEAD in America. No matter how hard I work, No
matter how long I work, the government takes all but $20 per day. Enemies
of the State like ME are prohibited from owning a reliable car, buying a
home or starting a business.
Worse yet, several branches of the government steadfastly refuse to release
public documents and honor Freedom of Information laws.
Others like EPA simply price public information out of public reach. EPA
assessed me $22,000 for one request alone, than refused to release
information regarding pesticide contamination of some 800 municipal wells.
Combined with IRS initiatives, it will be three years before I can make
this info public (and that's if I don't eat!) Meanwhile, EPA breaks the
law to keep unduly hazardous
pesticides/drugs on the market and corporations report record sales.
The news media doesn't cover any of the issues I'm working on. Government
disinformation prospers (outright lies to the American public).
I NEVER thought this Soviet style of government would be allowed to prosper
in the US, but I live it every day. Worse than Orwell predicted in 1984.
Members of BOTH major parties made this all possible -- don't think for a
moment you can't or won't be affected!
I am working to prepare a website to post over ten years of letters and
responses on important issues people are largely unaware of. Anyone
interested in hearing more can e-mail me at mark@journey.com
My old pesticide reform site is www.drbuggs.com
Please VOTE NADER -- and NOT Democrats or Republicans! It's our BEST HOPE
to restore democracy.
Sincerely,
Mark Adams
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