Quote:
Originally Posted by bgalbrecht
Libraries aren't free. I pay about $100 a year in property taxes for my local library. That book you borrow or read in the library, is paid for through those property taxes, and in turn pay the author's royalties, the publisher and distributor salaries along with the librarian's salary. I don't know who you think are wealthy oppressors, but it's certain not authors (with very few best-selling exceptions), not the editors, and probably not even the publishers. You're just rationalizing, and not even very well.
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Funding for Libraries depends on the locality. In the locations you are referring to, you seem to think people need to pay property taxes to take advantage of the services of the library. That is simply not true, as anybody whether homeless, moneyless or rich may rent or read the same book. Many locations do not pay for libraries via taxes and instead run them via donations, or via large estates.
Libraries dont even pay near the full MSRP for a book, as they buy directly from a library distributor. Though the actually value or impact of that one book is drastically higher than the book bought at Borders.
If people can go to a library to read a book tax independent, then there is absolutely no difference than downloading a book online and reading it.