One of the semi-frequent questions/complaints I get from our branch librarians is how to deal with patrons who are looking at pornography.  But during my training, one branch librarian mentioned that she'd had an incident with a patron looking at something much much worse: rotten.com

(I don't usually do warnings on my blog but I'm doing one here.  Although there's nothing disturbing on the Rotten.com front page that I linked to above, remember that you can't "unsee" anything you see once you start clicking on the links on that page! ) 

Rotten.com bills itself this way:

But Rotten.com isn't just a database of the disgusting; it's also a venue for making a point about censorship, at least according to "Soylent," the pseudonymous proprietor of Rotten.com, whose highly graphic content has earned him enemies around the world. The site is currently being investigated by Scotland Yard and the FBI for cannibalism. The German Family Ministry has threatened Soylent with legal action if he doesn't find a way to shield minors from his site. And then there's the endless cease-and-desist letters that flood in from a long list of major corporations that object to the site.

"Rotten dot-com serves as a beacon to demonstrate that censorship of the Internet is impractical, unethical and wrong," Soylent writes in his manifesto, adding that nothing he posts there can't be found elsewhere. "To censor this site, it is necessary to censor medical texts, history texts, evidence rooms, courtrooms, art museums, libraries, and other sources of information vital to functioning of free society."

A bit of sad news today, right in the middle of Freedom to Read Week...

Dear colleagues in the Book and Periodical Council,

We sadly note that Nancy Fleming has died. Nancy was the executive director of the BPC from 1979 to 1999. She helped organize the Freedom of Expression Committee and Freedom to Read Week. Her obit in The Globe and Mail is below.

Franklin Carter

_____________________

Tuesday February 26, 2008
FLEMING, Nancy Barbara (née Chisholm)
Chief Executive of the Book and Periodical Council for over twenty years and laureate of the Canadian Library Association Award for the Advancement of Intellectual Freedom in Canada, died peacefully on 24 February 2008 at Toronto Western Hospital following declining health in recent years. She was 76. Nancy leaves bereaved her three children by the late Allan Fleming, Martha, Peter and Susannah, as well as their partners; grandson McCullough and many friends and colleagues. Cremation will be followed later by a memorial event in Spring (contact peterfleming@sympatico.ca). Donations to Freedom to Read (www.freedomtoread.ca) would be appreciated.

Thanks to Heather M. for forwarding this to me...

Message from Terry Epperson, chair of PLG’s Braverman Prize committee

Hello –

We’re pleased to announce the fifth annual Miriam Braverman prize, sponsored by the Progressive Librarians Guild, for the best student paper on progressive library issues. Below are the guidelines for the prize. The announcement flyer can be found at: http://libr.org/plg/Braverman-08-flyer.pdf. Feel free to pass this announcement on to other listservs or groups that may be interested.

Braverman Prize Guidelines for PLG

1. Entrants must be Library/Information Science students attending a graduate level program in the United States or Canada.

2. Entries must be the original, unpublished work of the entrant, in English, and must not exceed 3,000 words.

3. The topic of the paper should concern an aspect of the social responsibilities of librarians, libraries, or librarianship. Papers related to archivists, archives, or archival work are also acceptable. Topics could include, but are not limited to, such concerns as professional ethics in the age of the USA PATRIOT Act; the commodification of information; the political value choices of cataloging and indexing; the role of libraries in bridging the information gap; democratic management systems within libraries, etc.

4. Each entry should include a cover sheet containing the entrant’s name, full contact information (address, phone number, e-mail address), name of the institution where the entrant is enrolled, and the title of the paper. No identifying information, other than the title, should appear on the paper itself.

5. Entries must be submitted electronically, in MS Word or RTF format, to bravermansubmissions@gmail.com

6. Entries must be received no later than 6pm on, April 15, 2008.

7. The winning entry will be published in Progressive Librarian and must conform to MLA in-text citation style. The winning entrant will also receive a $300 stipend toward attendance at the 2008 American Library Association annual conference in Anaheim, CA and an award at the annual PLG dinner. Award money is available only for ALA conference attendance; if the winner is unable to attend, the money will remain in the Braverman Award fund account or be donated at the discretion of the committee..

8. The judges’ decision is final. The act of submission implies the unqualified acceptance of the conditions of entry by the entrant.

Terrence W. Epperson, Ph.D.
Social Sciences Librarian
TCNJ Library
The College of New Jersey
P.O. Box 7718
Ewing, NJ 08628-0718
Phone: (609) 771-3352
Fax: (609) 637-5177
E-mail epperson@tcnj.edu
http://www.tcnj.edu/~library/epperson/index.html

From Books to Beers and Stacks to Snacks (Leap Year Edition)

"You Work An Extra Day This Year - Why Not Celebrate The Fact?"

Come to O'Hanlon's at 1947 Scarth St. -- we'll start at 5 pm on Friday February 29.  

RSVP on the event page. Spread the word far and wide -- especially to others who are not on Facebook.  The event page has RSVP instructions for those who are not on Facebook or you can post to the wall to let us know you are bringing more people.

Hope to see you there!

Your hosts,
Julie Arie, Jason Hammond and Julie McKenna

If you're an English major, you might see some great and deep symbolism in the fact that we took Pace to the womb-like waters of a mineral spa almost exactly nine months to the day after he was born.  Today is his nine-month birthday and it's almost unbelievable how quickly the time has flown - and I know it will only go faster.

Did I ever share that cool explanation of why time seems to go faster as you're older?  It's not just your mind playing tricks on you - there's a logical explanation.  When you're 10, a year is 1/10th of your entire lifetime.  When you're 20, a year is 1/20th.  When you're 50, it's 1/50th and so on.  So yes, each year that you're alive will seem shorter because it is a smaller fraction of your overall time being alive relatively speaking.  Kinda cool (and kinda depressing.) 

But anyhew, Pace was nine months in gestation and now he's nine months old and I'm not sure what that means but I'm sure it means something.  Here's a shot of Pace, Shea and I at the Mineral Spa. 

(Note to self: always remember to change the batteries in the digital camera or else the only shot you might be lucky enough to get is one of your son rubbing his eyes instead of smiling happily at the camera.)

For the most part, I've really enjoyed being on the road for the past month and a half (with one month still to go roughly).  In fact, I'm thinking that if I don't find a position when this contract ends, I might just offer myself out as a "Internet & computer training consultant" to other library systems across the province! 

Then again, there are times, such as the last couple days when I spent two nights at my parent's house away from Shea and Pace since I was working in communities closer to my hometown than to Weyburn, that it really wears on me, especially after long days like today (which still aren't over - I'm sitting in the library in Broadview, SK waiting for my evening session to start in 15 minutes.)  Then I have a two hour drive home after that.  But the reward at the end of the road makes it all worthwhile...

If you're an MLIS student or recent grad, I encourage you to enter this contest.  (I can't tell you how much fame and fortune I've gained by being a runner-up last year!   That does remind me - I better spend my CLA gift certificate for free swag before it expires!)

Dear Students:

CLA is pleased to announce the 25th Student Article Contest.

CANADIAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION
25th STUDENT ARTICLE CONTEST

Eligibility
The contest is open to all students registered in, or recently graduated from, a Canadian library school, a library technician program, an information science program, or faculty of education library program.

Registered students may be full or part time; graduates should have completed their studies within one year of the competition's closing date of March 31, annually. Articles submitted must be written while the student is enrolled in a program of study, or within one year of graduation.

Each contestant must submit a faculty member's statement attesting to the fact that the article fulfills the above requirements.

Multiple-author papers are eligible, but in the event such a paper is selected, only one prize will be awarded.
Submissions may be in English or French.
Prizes
First Prize:
$150 cash prize.
Free registration, accommodation and transportation to the CLA/ACB National Conference (courtesy of Coutts Information Services, Bowker and ProQuest).

The winning article will be published in Feliciter, the magazine of the Canadian Library Association/Association canadienne des bibliothèques. (Winning articles in French would appear in both official languages). (courtesy of Coutts Information Services <http://www.couttsinfo.com/>, ProQuest <http://il.proquest.com/brand/micromedia.shtml>, Bowker <http://www.bowker.com/>, and the Wosk Family Bursary).

Runners-Up:
First runner-up receives:
$75 choice of CLA/ACB publications.
$150 cash prize courtesy of the Wosk Family Bursary
Second runner-up receives:
$75 choice of CLA/ACB publications.
$100 cash prize courtesy of the Wosk Family Bursary
Content and Style
Articles should discuss, analyze or evaluate, in a clear and readable style, timely issues in librarianship or information science. Conclusions and premises should follow logically, and statements should be supported. Essays or term papers should be reworked into an article suitable for publication. The style should be informal but informative. References, if required, should be drawn from Canadian sources as much as possible and follow CLA/ACB's style sheet  and also available from Valérie Delrue at the CLA/ACB Office at (613) 232.9625 ext. 301 or e-mail: vdelrue@cla.ca

Originality
All manuscripts must be the original, unpublished work of the contestant(s). Entries must be submitted exclusively to the Canadian Library Association/Association canadienne des bibliothèques during the competition period.

Format for Submission
Manuscript length should be between 1,000 and 1,500 words, typewritten on 8 1/2" x 11" paper, double spaced, with generous margins. Two unfolded copies should be submitted to the following address, no later than March 31, annually.. Winners will be asked to supply their article in electronic format.

Send to:

Student Article Contest
Canadian Library Association/Association canadienne des bibliothèques
328 Frank Street
Ottawa, ON K2P 0X8
Tel: (613) 232-9625
Fax: (613) 563-9895
e-mail: info@cla.ca

Please include a separate page containing the following information: Full title of entry; name of the author(s); home address and telephone number; name of the program in which author(s) is/are registered; and a faculty member's verification.

Judging
A panel of judges will read and evaluate all entries; additional evaluators may be called upon to assess submissions in French.

Judges look for originality; value and relevance of the information presented; consistency and accuracy; style and readability; and suitability for publication. If, in the opinion of the judges, no article submitted satisfies these criteria, the panel reserves the right to not select a winner.

CONTEST CLOSING DATE: MARCH 31, ANNUALLY

Thank you,
Valerie Delrue
Membership Coordinator
Canadian Library Association
328 Frank Street
Ottawa, ON  K2P 0X8
Tel: 613-232-9625 x 301
Fax: 613-563-9895
vdelrue@cla.ca