It’s Super Tuesday!

I know what many of you are thinking, “So what?! It doesn’t have anything to do with me.” Ah, but it does. In the 60s and 70s, feminists proclaimed the personal is political.

The phrase was used to emphasize what was happening in women’s personal lives: access to health care, domestic violence, rape, work outside of the home and still primarily responsible for the home and children, access to sports opportunities, and more.

Do some of these issues sound familiar? They should because they are still just as important to women. However, they are also important to women’s families, their husbands, fathers, sons, daughters, and friends.

What is going on in your life, or a friend’s life, that could be made easier, healthier, or more financially secure if there was better support at the state or federal levels? Today, only 26 states mandate that insurance companies provide equitable coverage for contraceptives. Just today, the New York Times has a story in the health section about contraception not being covered by insurance plans, yet, yet, Viagra is. And this is just one issue in health care. What about rising costs, companies cutting back on coverage, and insurance companies denying coverage?  The personal is political!

And, what about education? Many of you students expect to leave Lyndon State and teach? Or, what about the quality of education that your students, children, nieces and nephews will receive? Are our schools underfunded? Are teachers fully prepared to teach? Are teachers expected to address issues in the classroom for which they are not prepared such as behavioral problems? Are our community tax dollars being well spent at our schools? What is the community’s obligation, or what are parental obligations toward educating students? The personal is political!

Even though today is Super Tuesday, when decisions could be made about who continues the race for the White House or not, Vermont’s primary is not until March 4, a long 4 weeks away. You still have time to think about what is important to you, learn about the candidates that support your values and beliefs, and go vote!

You might want to check out some of these sites:

NY Times “Election Guide”
Compare the candidates on various election 2008 issues. 

Vote 411
A non-partisan site providing information at the state level for absentee voting, election dates, voter registration, voting machines, eligibility requirements, and mroe.

Campaign U.
Links to articles focusing on the 2008 elections as they affect students, colleges, and higher education policy.

Indecision 2008
From Comedy Central, find video clips, interviews, a political news blog, and other campaign coverage.

FactCheck
Evaluates the accuracy of campaign claims.

There are also books in the library that are by or about some of the candidates. Stop and ask the reference staff for assistance to locate these books or other resources to help you make a decision during the next few weeks!

GO VOTE!!!!!!!!!!!!

How’s Your Semester Lookin’?

Everyone should be settling in to their semester routines by now. If you’re a student, are you feeling overwhelmed? If so, stop by the library and show us your research assignments. We’d be more than happy to help.

After you see us, get a cup of coffee, and choose any number of places within the library to sit, munch, and study while enjoying a great view.

Remember, we also have:

• Blackboard support if you need assistance or have questions about eportfolios, your course sites, or the content system. Just ask for Vicki.
• Study rooms so that groups of folks can study together.
• Video and DVD viewing stations for those required films and documentaries.
• EyeOn resources and subject guides when you need to research a topic, maybe for a speech, but aren’t sure where to start (or click on the link on the left).
• Need help with the research process: understanding plagiarism, citing your references, or something else, check out the research guides at the Library’s web site.
• Want to find specific DVDs or videos, musical scored, or periodicals, go to the holdings list to find out how to do that.

Remember, our hours are generally:

Mon – Thurs          8am – Midnight
Fri                           8am – 4pm
Sat                          Noon – 5pm
Sun                         Noon – Midnight

Our hours do change over breaks and holidays, so be sure to call us at x6450 or check the library web site for more details.

Finally, my New Year’s resolution is to post more regularly to this blog. I still want to tell you bits and pieces of news that I find interesting and match those stories with resources in our Library. However, I also want to tell you more about what’s going on in the Library.

Have a great day!

Water, it’s everywhere! Or, is it?

I was listening to VPR a few mornings ago on my way to work. There was a story about water, well, really, the lack of water in the southeastern U.S. Areas such as Georgia, North Carolina, and Alabama. Check out this map from NOAA to see where the extreme drought conditions are taking place.

Anyway, what I found completely disturbing, yet intriguing, about this story was that folks in the south are still concerned about their lawns! Yep, their lawns and landscaping. A level 2 drought response allows for lawns to be watered on alternate days of the week. However, a level 4 response calls for a complete ban on outdoor water usage. You’ll see a list of rules and exceptions here. During a level 4 response, you are still permitted to water food garden. Whew.

So, many folks, those who can afford it, are drilling for wells so they can access water for their landscaping. Even though drawing from irrigation wells affects the height of the water table, only now are states looking to impose bans on the creation of these wells.

The next time that you throw a glass of water away, think about this… We’ve known for quite some time that, in the future, water will pose a problem for most of humankind. Instead of oil, water will be the focus of most war.

To learn more about global water issues, you might want to check out some of these books from our library:

 Plan B: rescuing a planet under stress by Lester R. Brown.

Who’s Water is It: the unquenchable thirst of a water-hungry world edited by Bernadette McDonald and Douglas Jehl.

And, there are many excellent titles that can be found at the other VSC libraries. Just go to the library catalog and type in the phrase water supply.

There’s just so much to talk about!

It’s Halloween! The History Channel has an amazing web site about the history of this holiday. Check it out at http://www.history.com/minisites/halloween/.

Now…back to the blog. First, huge apologies for taking so long to get back to this blog. The semester started with a very intense bang, and I was out for a week with a bad back, so updating the blog just had to take a back seat.

However, I’m back and that back is better, and there’s just so much to talk about: the CA fires, Al Gore getting the Nobel Peace Prize, Freedom to Marry discussions in VT, Holly Near’s visit to the NEK, Red Sox won the 2007 World Series, and the brouhaha on campus about a particular column in the student paper The Critic.  Please, I know I’ve forgotten a lot. Bu

I’m going to highlight a few topics that are close to my heart.

First, Holly Near’s visit on campus. Holly is a singer and activist. The message I got that day is that activism starts with one small step, and it doesn’t have to be a loud banging step either. To read more about her, visit http://www.hollynear.com/. Oh, and checkout the LSC Library which has several of her recordings such as Singing with You, an album with Ronnie Gilbert.

Hey, how about those Sox! If you’re a Red Sox fan, or just a baseball fan (Is there such a thing?), we’ve got several books in the library that just might interest you: The Yankees vs. the Red Sox, 796.35764 R536y, and Still, we believe: the Boston Red Sox movie, DVD 796.35764 St54.

Finally, it’s been announced that there will be a public hearing in the Alexander Twilight Theater. The Vermont Commission on Family Recognition and Protection (http://www.leg.state.vt.us/WorkGroups/FamilyCommission/) will be there to hear testimoney for and against the right for gay and lesbian Vermonters to marry.  The Vermont Freedom to Marry Task Force (http://www.vtfreetomarry.org/) asks that everyone get out there and attend. If you’re not sure where you stand on this issue, the library has some books that you might want to check out: Same-sex marriage in the United States, 306.848 C119s and Why marriage matters, 306.848 W833w.

As always, if you need assistance, don’t hesitate to stop by your library and ask for help!

Sept. 11th

I started my job at Lyndon State on Monday, Sept. 10, 2001, so the anniversary of my job will always be tied in with the 11th. I won’t be able to think of one without the other. 

My partner and I had just moved that weekend from the Boston area, leaving behind many dear friends. I was sitting in my office, reading manuals, when my partner called to tell me the news.

Her sister, my sister-in-law, lives in DC and works for the Smithsonian. I have a good friend, from grad school, who works in the Congressional library. We have family and friends who live in that south, central part of Pennsylvania or in northern Maryland. And, certainly, we knew many people in the Boston area.

We were fortunate. Our friends and family were safe. Scared but safe. 

Today, as we take time to remember lives lost, relationships ruined, lives that will never be the same, let’s also remember the survivors, the folks that give us hope that things can be better, and that we can survive.

To learn more about al-Qaeda, New York City, the towers, CIA intelligence, and what’s happened after, you might want to check out these items from the LSC Library:

The Looming Tower by Lawrence Wright. This book is recognized as THE manual about al-Qaeda. Wright is a journalist, who also wrote the screenplay for the Denzel Washington movie, The Siege (1999). The Siege was not a critically acclaimed film, yet, because of Wright’s knowledge and insights into terrorists, this film was a spooky premonition of what was to come.

Aftermath by Joel Meyerowitz is a beautifully presented pictorial work of the heros and destruction of 9/11.

Beyond Retribution: peaceful tomorrows. This documentary, produced by the September Eleventh Families for Peaceful Tomorrows, shows the organization of this group and the work they do to promote peace.

Come into the Library and let us help you locate these resources as well as the other resources on 9/11.