Librarians respond to suggestion Amazon should replace libraries

[curtw]

LIU's "Make a Gift" page allows you to designate an exact amount, AND how the funds are dispersed. I just donated $1 to the "Fire Panos Mourdoukoutas fund." Also left a complaint about his philosophy in the comment field.

[j.p.s]

Originally Posted by rcentros

That's what I thought. I looked up the guy's credentials and then read the article and there seems to be serious disconnect here. Professor and Chair of the Economic Department of Long Island University? Teaches at Columbia? It's almost like he decided to let his 10 year-old kid/grandkid write the article and didn't have time to edit it. Of course I haven't read his other stuff, so maybe it's always like this. Or maybe this was written by some outfit where they pay by the word for click-bait articles and the professor's name was just attached to it.

His bio ...
https://www.forbes.com/sites/panosmo.../#b84b18166505

What's really weird is that the first few paragraphs talk about libraries in the past tense. Like they no longer exist. Strange stuff.

I'd say deliberate click bait from the prof himself. His students say his lectures are witty.

He's nowhere near Arthur Laffer, whose hoodwinkees included top government officials.

[curtw]

Originally Posted by rcentros

The article starts to come in, then it disappears. So maybe someone has figured out to install a delete button on the Internet after all.

EDIT: Found it on Google's cache. I guess I read most of it already in the various articles about it. If the link Duckie Tigger provide doesn't work for you, this one might ...

https://webcache.googleusercontent.c...&ct=clnk&gl=us

If you go to the Wayback header at the top of the page, mouse over and click on the red vertical line, it'll go to the actual archived page. Might not work on a tablet/phone.

[crich70]

They overlook some basic facts. Libraries provide access to any book for free. Amazon on the other hand has some free books or books that are free for a limited time, but most of their content even in Kindle format isn't free. Even the KU books aren't really free as you have to have a paid subscription to have access.

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by curtw

I just donated $1 to the "Fire Panos Mourdoukoutas fund."

I like libraries myself. I just finished a hardback library book (Amazon Kindle price would have been US$16.17) ten minutes ago. But I think it would be a bad precedent to fire professors for having opinions I disagree with.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by SteveEisenberg

I like libraries myself. I just finished a hardback library book (Amazon Kindle price would have been US$16.17) ten minutes ago. But I think it would be a bad precedent to fire professors for having opinions I disagree with.

Although Long Island University has the right to not have the Chair of their Economics Department embarrass them. I would hope someone would sit Panos Mourdoukoutas down and have a few words with him concerning this idiotic article.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by SteveEisenberg

I like libraries myself. I just finished a hardback library book (Amazon Kindle price would have been US$16.17) ten minutes ago. But I think it would be a bad precedent to fire professors for having opinions I disagree with.

I don't borrow paper books often, but recently there was one my sister-in-law wanted me to read (she runs a book club in Colorado) that wasn't available on Overdrive and it cost about $18 for the Kindle version, so it came down to either buying it used at Half Price Books or borrowing it from the library. It wasn't one I wanted to keep, so I borrowed it. I found I enjoyed reading a paper book for a change – actually I've read a few of them this summer.

[crich70]

Originally Posted by rcentros

I don't borrow paper books often, but recently there was one my sister-in-law wanted me to read (she runs a book club in Colorado) that wasn't available on Overdrive and it cost about $18 for the Kindle version, so it came down to either buying it used at Half Price Books or borrowing it from the library. It wasn't one I wanted to keep, so I borrowed it. I found I enjoyed reading a paper book for a change – actually I've read a few of them this summer.

Sounds interesting. What was the title if you don't mind the question.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by crich70

Sounds interesting. What was the title if you don't mind the question.

"Nothing Daunted" by Dorothy Wickenden. Looks like the Kindle book is (was?) $12, I thought it was $18, not sure why (must have been another one I was looking at). Quite a bit of interesting history of Colorado in it.

[GrannyGrump]

A factoid in the professor's bio piqued my curiosity: all his lecture engagements seem to be outside the U.S.

[SleepyBob]

And it's been pulled...

[Tarana]

Jeff Bezos would be the first to say that Amazon should not replace libraries. Anybody who reads a lot gets that. Non-readers are the ones who come up with this drivel.

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by rcentros

I would hope someone would sit Panos Mourdoukoutas down and have a few words with him concerning this idiotic article.

Except for the word idiotic, I agree. And my words would be along these lines:

the internet doesn’t always differentiate the misdemeanors from the felonies

And this Forbes article doesn't even rise to the level of a misdemeanor. To treat this tiny article, one utterly without personal insults, as some kind of sin, is beyond me.

[tomsem]

The premise of the article is ridiculous. But sometimes it is all about the click bait.

[ekbell]

My first assumption was that the article was tongue-in-cheek, making a point by demonstrating the absurdity of the opposing view. An enjoyable technique but hard to pull off effectively and liable to be misunderstood.

The Professor's reputation for wit and the (deliberately?) poor writing would fit this assumption.