Here’s another way to go about this: have you talked to your supervisor/management about this, since you seem to think this is a big issue? What did they say?

Here’s another way to go about this: have you talked to your supervisor/management about this, since you seem to think this is a big issue? What did they say?

I beg to differ. If a person is looks at a teen wearing nothing but her panties and gets his/her jollies from it, that’s porn.

You know, it’s the patrons who actually pay taxes (and our salaries) who are being denied access to the computers while the kids mindlessly surf. This seems hardly fair to me.

I beg to differ. If a person is looks at a teen wearing nothing but her panties and gets his/her jollies from it, that’s porn.

You know, it’s the patrons who actually pay taxes (and our salaries) who are being denied access to the computers while the kids mindlessly surf. This seems hardly fair to me.

And then you say “they are on myspace learning nothing but how to spell extremely poorly.” That suggests rather highly that they’re doing much more than “just look[ing] at pictures.”

I personally agree – I think there are absolutes, too. But libraries have ALWAYS had material that would highly offend some people – be it the Bible or the Joy of Sex. So the value judgement argument stays – by trying to overlay your definition of “real work” onto others, you are indeed making a value judgement on your patrons.

And then you say “they are on myspace learning nothing but how to spell extremely poorly.” That suggests rather highly that they’re doing much more than “just look[ing] at pictures.”

I personally agree – I think there are absolutes, too. But libraries have ALWAYS had material that would highly offend some people – be it the Bible or the Joy of Sex. So the value judgement argument stays – by trying to overlay your definition of “real work” onto others, you are indeed making a value judgement on your patrons.

And no – nearly all of the kids in our library just look at pictures – along with simply watching them surf, I run software that can prove this. We are in an extreme inner-city setting, right across the street from two inner-city schools. After school, all of the computers are dominated by kids that could be exploring the web and possibly expanding their horizons, but instead they are on myspace learning nothing but how to spell extremely poorly.

For me, it all boils down to this: Do we want people to enrich their lives, or just waste their time? Please, no more lectures on value judgments – some things are absolute. Our computers are a valuable finite resources that could be used by people who need the them to do real work – instead, they are TV for the kiddies.

And no – nearly all of the kids in our library just look at pictures – along with simply watching them surf, I run software that can prove this. We are in an extreme inner-city setting, right across the street from two inner-city schools. After school, all of the computers are dominated by kids that could be exploring the web and possibly expanding their horizons, but instead they are on myspace learning nothing but how to spell extremely poorly.

For me, it all boils down to this: Do we want people to enrich their lives, or just waste their time? Please, no more lectures on value judgments – some things are absolute. Our computers are a valuable finite resources that could be used by people who need the them to do real work – instead, they are TV for the kiddies.

I’m pretty sure those “kids” aren’t ONLY looking at scantily clad girls. Instead of complaining, why not hold a MySpace forum at your library and find out what other things those kids are doing, and how you can help serve ALL your customers better?