Library Cuts Should Be a Call to Arms

* Last Friday I drove to the Lake Forest library, one of my wife’s and my favorite places to spend some time, not only to check out and return books but to avail ourselves of the countless sources of information that are stored there. It was closed. It was one of the days under the new cut-down days and hours of all Orange County public libraries.

I wasn’t the only one who forgot; there were several others voicing their disappointment and disapproval of the new schedule.

This little episode brought to mind a letter to the editor (Lehman, June 20) several weeks ago shortly after the cut-back was announced. The person had a brilliant idea: “Why not charge a yearly fee of $5 for the privilege of owning a library card?”

Surely this has to be the biggest bargain that exists in our society of high prices. The thought of this paltry fee in the midst of the high cost of everything, be it a service or a product, brings to mind the Depression years when, for a nickel, one could go to a vegetable stand and purchase a huge bag of assorted vegetables. They called them “soup greens.”

Someone said to me: “They’ll cheat, and pass the card to members of their family.” So what! For those family members who want their own card, there could be a charge of $2 a year for a duplicate card to a family member.

Hopefully there are enough interested people in Orange County to take action to give us back the original library hours. Will someone please “get the ball rolling?”

JUSTICE S. LAUB

Laguna Hills

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* It is truly amazing to me that the people of Orange County, and all of California for that matter, are not up in arms. The only untainted part of local and statewide government has been seriously affected by recent budget cuts--and no one seems to care. I refer to the library system.

Why no one has come forth to organize an initiative movement, to rectify the current situation where the libraries have had their hours cut drastically, is beyond me.

All it would take is an initiative that would allow the funds necessary to restore the libraries to full service to be taken from the current salaries paid to any elected official. To allow those bums to affect the library system this way without paying for it dearly is disgraceful. An initiative please!

DICK SPEHN

Corona del Mar