Friday, October 29, 2010

Peurile [sic] and anonymous

That's us. Strange goings on chez Coates. The first comment here alerts our hero to this blog, though it seems to be an e-mail which the sender wishes to be kept private. No matter. Then Ashe (who is a fine one to condemn anonymity, we think) weighs in to denounce us as puerile. Remember your Latin, Ashe, it's from puer, n. a boy; that may help you spell it.

Are we puerile? Probably, but, as the Irish say, where's the harm? We like to think that to mock pomposity is salutary. No names, no pack-drill.

 

16 comments:

  1. How pathetic that you wish to be snide without identifying yourselves. Clearly you do not have the courage to be straightforward. You would enjoy Mr Coates's books. Delane's War, for example, is a fascinating read and would make an excellent Christmas gift for those who want an original take on the Crimean War. 'Patsy' was heralded as the best book ever read by a friend for whom I bought it. If you disagree with his solutions for the library service, you should debate them openly and not make the matter personal.

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  2. Thanks Shirley. That's CoatesWatch's Christmas list sorted out. I'm surprised you haven't suggested his magnum opus, the Good Library Manual, instead.
    There is a proud tradition of anonymity in satire. If Tim truly were the public library's friend, there'd be no need for us. But since he makes statements like, 'so in these times of public spending cuts, what I say is that, in terms of the library service, they should have happened a long time ago' (from the Great Statement delivered to the subscription libraries), we think we have a part to play.

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  3. Oooh, an army of weally, weally bwave people who are playing a part in saving public libraries, but in secret, like The Silent Three in the 'School Friend' comic or, if you are boys, like the Lone Wainger on the telly. Can't wait to have you alongide when Swindon's library strategy appears next month. How shall we know you are there ?

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  4. How marvellous!! It's about time Coatesy and his chums got a taste of their own medicine.Let the backlash begin...

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  5. Mr Karno, I am nobody's "chum". I am a housewife from Swindon, for heaven's sake. Anyway, enjoy your "backlash". Enough of this nonsense. Goodbye.

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  6. You won't know we're there, Shirley, because we won't be there, because we don't go touting for consultancies from every library service in crisis.
    We believe in, and fight for, public library services, and we are with everyone else who does that. CoatesWatch started because we object to those who ponce off those struggles.

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  7. That's a bit disingenuous of you. There are dozens of consultants out there getting fees for advising councils; some sponsored by the MLA. Clearly you do not, as you suggest, object to them all on principle -- just the one, for some reason. To put the record straight, Tim Coates waived his fee for the consultancy he was asked by Swindon Council to carry out in early 2009. Contact the council officer, B.Brannan to confirm this. I don't think the others would have done dozens of hours work for nothing. But then your agenda is only to villify Coates, so such information will not be of interest to you.

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  8. But Shirley, he spends his whole time discrediting people who work hard to make public library services relevant and effective with rapidly dwindling resources. He gathers together random figures and snippets of information and draws inaccurate conclusions, claiming to have all the answers. If only we would listen to him, the housewives' choice, then all would be well in libraryland. What we have to ask ourselves is what has he actually done? Why aren't we all clamouring for his services? God knows we need some help in the current climate. But no....there's an eerie silence

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  9. Tim Coates: Am I allowed to answer some of these things? I certainly object too, to having someone suggest that I 'ponce off' the struggles to improve public libraries. And I deny that I gather 'random figures and draw inacurate conclusions'. I earn a small amount of income from giving advice to councils and which is not secret, so I would ask that you have some care for my reputation. If you have specific charges please make them clearly so I can see what they are. I would like to know who it is that is making these allegations, please? Are you professional public librarians? Do you represent a group?

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  10. I don't know whether you are aware that in 2009 I 'revealed' to a council meeting and to the public a document that I had received electronically within a bunch of stuff from Coates to show how he had come to his conclusions in his consultancy for Swindon. He was unaware that I took it to a meeting. The council document detailed 9 community libraries for closure or de-staffing and the relevant savings . Gorse Hill Library (closed 2009) was on that list of nine. Walcot, Even Swindon and Old Town libraries also featured on the list. If you are interested in their fate, you can ask me.

    Who had prepared the "confidential" Value for Money Report 2009-10 ? The Chief Librarian. For whom ? We do not know, as the council Leader and his Deputy denied all knowledge of it, but were furious that it had been "leaked". The mystery remains.

    I therefore trust none in office who assure us that they are getting on with job behind the scenes in users' best interests, be they professionals or elected members, central government or quangos -- unless they are willing to show exactly what they are getting on with on our behalf and demonstrate that it will improve the service for users.

    As to the "eerie silence", I suppose there may be people of influence who brief against Coates from sectors who feel his ideas might threaten them. Perhaps that is the answer. Listening to someone does not mean you are obliged to like them or agree with them, but it is always useful to have an open mind.

    As to the "housewives choice", that is patronising, as it implies that you are oh so much better informed. I have had many exchanges with individuals in high office who take the same tone. In closing, I'll point out that had I not received that document from Mr Coates and his and others' support, it is quite possible that Old Town Library would not be OPEN, and staffed, today.

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  11. Glad you could drop in, Tim. Interesting that you suppose us to be professional public librarians. I wonder why?

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  12. Tim Coates: By the same process that makes me think that Perkins is probably a cat.

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  13. Oh, and in re consultants, in fact, Shirley, yes, we do object to them in principle. People who borrow your watch and then tell you the time, in our opinion.

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  14. It is inferred in this blog's knowledge of the field that they are librarians. I don't think there is any doubt about that (for heaven's sake say so if you are not!). In which case shame, it is most sacred that our libraries champion free speech. Librarians are also (admittedly debatably, they cannot, e.g., be 'struck off') 'professionals', so this is doubly disturbing. Inciting hate is not the kind of development and progress of the society we live in that a professional takes responsibility for.

    You know I don't agree with everything that TC says, but I do know that I have learnt lessons worth more than gold from Mr. Coates. I do know as well the that The Good Library Blog reads my comments and without doubt that when I make a good reasoned argument my own critique is fully taken on board.

    I have recently found myself penning the following:

    "Maybe our current library leaders should be put out to grass as soon as possible for letting the libraries deteriorate to the point where the purseholders see a library as no more than a warehouse operation for a public repository of books."
    http://thewikiman.org/blog/?p=1076&cpage=1#comment-14425

    If the libraries were not critisised then I am sure they would not last long, and possibly this is one reason that they are in the mess they are at the moment. My own critique of the libraries and Tim Coates' are very different, but I would hope the libraries would only thrive and prosper as the net result of the healthy argument that follows.

    I take issue with the proposition that cuts are long overdue for the libraries. I would argue that public libraries in fact in the age we live in need _more_ money, not less. And that indeed is an argument I have intuitively been working on for the last 5 years (since I have been working in public libraries). Mr Coates makes some good points if you listen to his argument. I think though if his arguments are accepted then I would like to see a refocusing of finance into more strategic areas within the library service rather than cuts. And that and more funding I believe can be thorougly justified. Libraries if used intelligently and without short termism could save society the cost of a lot of the firefighting it currently has to do (the libraries' values can do this).

    OK, I'll get off my soapbox now ;)

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  15. Re: CoatesWatch latest comment about consultants.

    Here is a link to a letter I wrote on the subject to the Swindon Advertiser.

    Bear in mind that the Coates 2009 consultancy cost the council nothing, but 2 subsequent consultancies re libraries, commissioned jointly by the MLA and council, were funded from the public purse. Now ....

    .... To residents' dismay (considering all the cuts) more consultants are being commissioned for £50,000 to suggest delivery “options” for libraries, leisure, culture and parks services -- the reason for my letter. If you at CoatesWatch object to all consultants as a matter of principle, you are giving evidence of that, or of your good faith, by means of this Blog.
    http://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/yoursay/swindonletters/8363841.Letter_from_Shirley_Burnham/

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  16. Typing error :

    I meant to write : "you are not giving evidence of that, or of your good faith, by means of this Blog."

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