Two days ago, Filipino librarians were on the spotlight when columnist Adrian E. Cristobal's article, 105 'useless' librarians, appeared in the editorial section of the July 28th issue of the Manila Bulletin (MB).
Even before I get to read the said column (as directed by the link in the email), I already had this gut feel that this'll illicit a melting pot of reaction amongst my colleagues; which would mostly be defensive. I discerned correctly.
I'd be a hypocrite if I say that I didn't feel even a tinge of revolt when he likened those 105 PRC-accredited librarians to dogs. Bakit naman sa dinami-rami ng propesyon sa mundo, e mga laybraryan pa ang nakita nya? (Why is it that of all professions in the world, the librarians were the ones singled out?) At bakit aso, dalmatian pa? (And why dogs, dalmatians?) I cooked up this crazy deduction that maybe prior to that day, Cristobal was in Morayta and chanced upon a BFL (Board for Librarians) accreditor, exchanged their hellos and then that night, caught Disney's 101 Dalmatians on DVD (may even be a pirated copy as the premise is that he's in Morayta). After which, he grabbed his pen and wrote down his thoughts that would fill up his space in that section of the paper. All in a day's work.
That excuse would've put me to rest had I not discovered that I actually have a copy of the July 28 broadsheet (you get MB for P10 whenever you eat breakfast at McDonald's, see?). I compelled myself to re-read the column, and as I've pondered on it once more, I gathered that he was not really trampling on the profession. His violations were that he just didn't have the appropriate title for his piece and that he still has this thick glasses+hairnet+snob+rubber stamp concept of a librarian (yes Richard, a glorified clerk). On a personal note, I can't blame him. Cristobal is of age. And old age, though inexcusable, has never been and never will be a transgression.
The best response is to throw off all defensiveness, despite being offended. I dropped off a comment over at Von's blog that if there's one crowd that should be mature enough to handle this, it must be the librarians'. To let our guard down too easily is a no-brainer. We should act upon the issue level-headedly. Librarians are trained to manage entrusted information, not to assassinate characters. Let's be about our purpose and fulfill our duties, especially to those in dire need of "enlightenment". Let's impart what needs to be imparted.
Basta ako, hindi ako dalmatian (As for me, I am not a dalmatian).
Even before I get to read the said column (as directed by the link in the email), I already had this gut feel that this'll illicit a melting pot of reaction amongst my colleagues; which would mostly be defensive. I discerned correctly.
I'd be a hypocrite if I say that I didn't feel even a tinge of revolt when he likened those 105 PRC-accredited librarians to dogs. Bakit naman sa dinami-rami ng propesyon sa mundo, e mga laybraryan pa ang nakita nya? (Why is it that of all professions in the world, the librarians were the ones singled out?) At bakit aso, dalmatian pa? (And why dogs, dalmatians?) I cooked up this crazy deduction that maybe prior to that day, Cristobal was in Morayta and chanced upon a BFL (Board for Librarians) accreditor, exchanged their hellos and then that night, caught Disney's 101 Dalmatians on DVD (may even be a pirated copy as the premise is that he's in Morayta). After which, he grabbed his pen and wrote down his thoughts that would fill up his space in that section of the paper. All in a day's work.
That excuse would've put me to rest had I not discovered that I actually have a copy of the July 28 broadsheet (you get MB for P10 whenever you eat breakfast at McDonald's, see?). I compelled myself to re-read the column, and as I've pondered on it once more, I gathered that he was not really trampling on the profession. His violations were that he just didn't have the appropriate title for his piece and that he still has this thick glasses+hairnet+snob+rubber stamp concept of a librarian (yes Richard, a glorified clerk). On a personal note, I can't blame him. Cristobal is of age. And old age, though inexcusable, has never been and never will be a transgression.
The best response is to throw off all defensiveness, despite being offended. I dropped off a comment over at Von's blog that if there's one crowd that should be mature enough to handle this, it must be the librarians'. To let our guard down too easily is a no-brainer. We should act upon the issue level-headedly. Librarians are trained to manage entrusted information, not to assassinate characters. Let's be about our purpose and fulfill our duties, especially to those in dire need of "enlightenment". Let's impart what needs to be imparted.
Basta ako, hindi ako dalmatian (As for me, I am not a dalmatian).
2 comments:
tracking back from "4,000+ Useful Librarians"...
Christine (LIS student): Never a Dalmatian
arf! arf! :-)
Post a Comment