What's The Harm

Have you ever wondered why so many people care so much about things that do no harm to anyone?  I have, and it’s recently been a recurring theme politically, professionally, and personally.

Starting with that former one, in Iowa and other republican-led states, politicians and their activist buddies are primarily focused on passing laws that hurt the LGBTQ community.  Why?  How are they or anyone else being harmed by library books, drag shows, or gender-identity causes?

The answer is they aren't harmed, but they're scared -- not only about change, but about losing money, power (same thing), and religion (also the same thing!).  Fake conservatives want no threats to their straight white Christian world.

Moving on the the professional front, I work with vendors who need authorization forms.  That's no problem, until they start requiring a specific manner of delivery.  We've long ago entered the digital age, and the COVID-19 pandemic made it even more common, but I still work with vendors who require original documents.

Who is harmed by accepting verifiable electronic signatures?  I guarantee these companies are going to digitize the document anyway!  I suppose the answer here is, some companies will only do things the way they've always done them.

Finally on the personal level, I've experienced an increase in the already-high number of people who want to make everything about themselves.  No conversation can be had without them taking it over, for nothing can be more important than what they or their loved ones do.

They'll even complain when told good news, if it isn't given at the time and place or their choosing.  A family / friend getting more attention harms no one; it only interrupts the desire of some for affirmation from others.  (Thanks, Facebook!)  Those who represent the 'some' should be avoided.

My conclusion in all of these items is pretty libertarian: If it harms no one else, why do you care?

Taxes And Your Public Library

Generally speaking, we pay too much tax. Income tax, property tax, sales tax, you name it, we pay too much of it. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure this out, just pick up the paper any day and you will read about some sort of local, state, or federal goverment fraud and abuse of taxpayer money. Taxpayer money wouldn't be wasted if there wasn't too much of it.

Having said that - and having made it clear that I am nothing if not a warrior for the taxpayer - there are some services for which I don't mind being taxed. Police and fire protection, utilities, that sort of thing. Basically, if we need it to establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, or promote the general welfare, that's cool. Otherwise, we should not be taxed for it.

Which brings me to the topic of public libraries. Now, I don't think public libraries are evil. My family has benefitted in countless ways from the availabily of a nice public library. But let's get real: They are in many ways a multi-million (billion?) dollar taxpayer boondoggle.

Look, we don't need a nice public library in every stinking town. I travel Iowa a lot, and I'm telling you, damn near every little town has at least one bar, one convenience store, and one library. That may seem nice, but the thing of it is, neither the bar nor convenience store are taking money out of people's pockets whether they use them or not. And no - not every suburb in every city needs one either. Ever heard of sharing services?

Also, we don't need public libraries to be everything to everybody. These days they are all apparently required to have computers with internet access, DVD movies, and perhaps even a little coffee shop. What ever happened to just being a quiet place to read or to loan out books? Oh, and they don't need to be housed in multi-million dollar buildings, either.

So where's the outrage for the over-abundance and over-indulgences of these taxpayer funded libraries? I suppose it's a little bit like kicking a cat - while many people may want to do that, it isn't going to be a real popular target with most folks. And let's face it, there are worse expenditures of tax money.

But let's at least be honest - we could find less expensive ways to promote the general welfare.