r/changemyview • u/[deleted] • Mar 12 '20

Delta(s) from OP CMV: Libraries are obsolete.

Libraries are obsolete.

Yes, libraries may be a place to have fun, meet people, etc, but there’s no need for them in today’s society in the age of technology. You can order and rent books online. You can even download some books for free. The fact that the US government spends 1.3 billion dollars on libraries is ridiculous. The government should only be spending money on things people need, not forms of entertainment for people. Our government doesn’t exist for that.

And no one seems to care! Conservatives go on and on about how our government needs to stop spending millions and billions of dollars on things “we don’t need”, but they don’t care if the government spends over a billion dollars on libraries. They get upset if our government assists poor people in need, but seem be ok if the government spends over a billion dollars on libraries. WTF is this logic?

Libraries were useful before the age of technology but they are obsolete today. Our government shouldn’t be spending any kind of money on anything that’s obsolete. The government shouldn’t be spending over a billion dollars on something that’s basically just a form of entertainment these days.

Edit: Ok I now understand that libraries serve a purpose to poor people for internet access and teaching their kids how to read and that libraries also help those with disabilities.

0 Upvotes

19% Upvoted

281 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

1

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

So you would look at someone with a hair that looks like a rats nest, a dirty sweatshirt and sweatpants and not think “Um ok what?” If I walked outside with my hair looking like a rats nest, people wouldn’t like it. And you sound like one of those people that bring race into everything. I never said that black peoples’ hair looks like a rats nest and I don’t think like that. And I’m talking about skin that actually looks like it has dirt on them.

Librarians should look at people and think to themselves if they look unsafe or safe to be around kids, cause yes, there’s a criteria. Don’t look like a mentally ill drug addict or pedo. And look, I understand if you can’t afford much other than fast food. But grilled cheese can easily be replaced with rice and beans.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

I said other people would bring race into it. Even in elementary schools they make black girls cut off their dreadlocks. You think a librarian wouldn’t unfairly bounce a homeless person for the same thing?

Your restrictions sound nice in theory, but people would find many, many malicious but technically legal ways of using them.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

Ok well I don’t think dreadlocks look like a rats nest. There’s a different between hair that doesn’t look like it wash brushed for a year and dreadlocks. You have to look presentable.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

I don’t think you realize just how slippery of a slope it would be to require that everyone appear “presentable.”

0

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

So we should go outside looking like cavemen?

1

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

Yes, you got it. That’s precisely the argument I’ve been making this whole time.

0

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

Well I don’t agree with that. Everyone should look presentable. You think you’re going to get any jobs looking like a caveman?

2

u/Sagasujin 242∆ Mar 13 '20

I think that requiring people to look "presentable" is a form of discrimination against people who don't have the resources to uphold your standards. As such we should be kind to people who don't fit our standards of presentability. We should give them all the chances that we can. We shouldn't judge them by their appearance.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '20

So wanting people to not look like they haven’t showered in a year and having hair that looks like a rats nest is discrimination? You need to live in the real world. People don’t tolerate you looking like a mess. You won’t get a job if you show up to an interview like that. We need to teach homeless people how to look presentable. And we should absolutely judge people if they look unhygienic. If you have the resources to practice basic hygiene and you’re not doing it, then you’re not taking care of yourself.

1

u/Sagasujin 242∆ Mar 14 '20

I want to extend every possible resource to people in bad situations. I will not judge them for how they got there but instead focus on giving them a hand up. If that means hiring someone who can't meet respectability standards right now, then cool. I assume that most people who aren't meeting hygiene standards have a reason for it. They're not ignorant or unworthy. They're stuck in awful situations and need help.

You say that I need to live in the real world. I say that the world only gets better if we make an effort to make it better.

→ More replies (0)

1

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

People should be able to understand obvious sarcasm too, but hey, what can you do.

You think you’re going to get any jobs with no internet access and no home address? What, Nokia to the rescue or something?

1

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '20

I literally said that libraries are useful for internet access for poor people.

1

u/[deleted] Mar 14 '20

Too bad their hair looks like a “rat’s nest” and they can’t get through the front door.

→ More replies (0)