Category Archives: Communication

Communication

Information Literacy In The News: Fear

Fear. It’s such a common part of our days, we kind of take for granted that we are supposed to be afraid of all kinds of things.

Watching the news, getting updates on Facebooks, alerts on your phone – they are all filled with Scary Things! Be afraid!! All the time! What’s in that food! A politician said a thing! Something scary happened somewhere! Sharks are out there! Don’t talk to strangers! Barricade yourself in your home!!!!! THE WORLD IS ENDING!!!!!

https://www.flickr.com/photos/scottandjayne/28990973371
Hey, ducks are scary! Don’t judge….

So….yeah.

Except. This is all unnecessary. Most of us have very little to be afraid of in our daily lives.

We are living at one of the safest, most prosperous times in history. Things are not perfect, of course. (Libraries can keep working to make the world better!) But overall – this is the best time to be around!

If that sounds like some nuts-o statement – remember: News is stuff that is weird, outside the norm of what’s happening. That’s why it’s new. It’s interesting, and valuable; but if something is “news” then it’s not what usually happens. “News” means “things you probably don’t need to fear because they are unusual.”

I’m not the only one to notice that we are safe and prosperous. Lots. Of. People. Know.This.Idea.

Don’t be afraid of the ocean because of sharks – they don’t really want to eat you. Don’t be afraid to go outside – sunshine provides important health benefits. Don’t be afraid to talk to a stranger – they are probably just as nice as you are.

But of course, there are very reasonable fears. There are actual problems. Perspective is good though, so below you can find a bouquet of real fears and a little info to go with it. So let’s get some information literacy on this subject – let’s learn some facts that can help us to make good decisions based on good information.

Remember: Keep perspective! Don’t let fear run your day, or your life! Drop off all those foolish fears, and maybe give some thoughts to realistic fears.

At the very least – this will give you some interesting books to read! And, maybe you can develop a fun new, more realistic phobia! (No, please don’t do that!)

Note: the book links below take you to Amazon.com, where all the book descriptions come from. If you click on a link and then buy anything at Amazon, we get a teeny percent of their profits. Thanks!!! That money means a lot to us!

Cars

Cars are convenient and useful in a lot of ways. But they are a top cause of death for us, their pollution spews out for everyone to breath, and they require a lot of cost in infrastructure and space in roads, road repair, parking lots, and parking garages.

“Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death in the U.S.1, with over 100 people dying every day. 2 More than 2.5 million drivers and passengers were treated in emergency departments as the result of being injured in motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2015.1 The economic impact is also notable: in a one-year period, the cost of medical care and productivity losses associated with occupant injuries and deaths from motor vehicle traffic crashes exceeded $63 billion.” (from the CDC)

Try to get out and walk when you can – it’s good for your physical and mental health, reduces the pollution in the air you and your neighbors breath, and you reduce the damage to roads nearby. Do you live in a community that wants to force you into a car, even for quick trips, by denying you sidewalks? Feel free to notify your elected officials that encouraging walking is good for the community. Sure – your individual contribution to the issues isn’t huge, but it helps the community and it helps you individually.


Income Inequality

The massive inequality in income in our country is not just a matter of simple fairness – it’s a step in the toppling of countries throughout history. If money is staying with just a teeny number of people, then it’s not available to make an overall society stronger. So, just one small example of the problem: Glance over those pothole-ridden streets you can see everywhere, and try not to worry about the safety of the bridges you drive over every day – and wonder what could happen if the mega-wealthy humans and corporations paid taxes to be part of the community.

Not sure what to think? Read through a few sources to get ideas you can use to understand the problem.

Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty, by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson

“Based on fifteen years of original research Acemoglu and Robinson marshal extraordinary historical evidence from the Roman Empire, the Mayan city-states, medieval Venice, the Soviet Union, Latin America, England, Europe, the United States, and Africa to build a new theory of political economy with great relevance for the big questions of today…”

” $2.00 a Day: Living on Almost Nothing in America , by Kathryn Edin and H. Luke Shaefer

“After two decades of brilliant research on American poverty, Kathryn Edin noticed something she hadn’t seen before — households surviving on virtually no cash income. Edin teamed with Luke Shaefer, an expert on calculating incomes of the poor, to discover that the number of American families living on $2.00 per person, per day, has skyrocketed to one and a half million households, including about three million children. “

The Broken Ladder: How Inequality Affects the Way We Think, Live, and Die, by Keith Payne

” The levels of inequality in the world today are on a scale that have not been seen in our lifetimes, yet the disparity between rich and poor has ramifications that extend far beyond mere financial means. In The Broken Ladder psychologist Keith Payne examines how inequality divides us not just economically; it also has profound consequences for how we think, how we respond to stress, how our immune systems function, and even how we view moral concepts such as justice and fairness. “

Ticks

This is an increasingly scary problem – and something you should take seriously. (I love Permethrin; spray it on your clothes, shoes, hats, backpacks – and keep ticks away.) Here are just a few tick-related diseases, and this list keeps growing:

Antibiotic Resistance

Most of us have no memory of what people throughout history had to face. Small cuts can mean death. Illnesses that we can handle easily now wiped out millions of people. A burst appendix meant death for too many people. We are running out of antibiotics that can kill off dangerous bacteria – and there is not enough financial incentive for drug companies to develop new ones.

Read through a few resources here:

Japanese Knotweed

I had no idea this was even a fear I should have! But now that I know about it, I’ve nervously walked around my backyard while casting eyes toward my neighbors, to see if any of us have this invasive, destructive weed.

From the Minnesota Department of Agriculture: “Japanese knotweed forms tall, dense thickets that shade out and displace native vegetation, degrade habitat for fish and wildlife, can alter waterways, and facilitate erosion and flooding. Knotweed growth through pavement cracks and along paved surface edges can result in damaged pavement.”

Rising Oceans

Insurance companies know it. Cities, states, and small countries heading for the future know it. People living near the coastlines know it. Water levels are rising, and infrastructure is being affected.


CMLE, Communication, Podcast

We Want YOU to Podcast With Us This Summer!

Stop by and chat with us this summer!

We’re making our summer plans at CMLE and you probably are too! Before your calendars get filled up too much, consider adding “podcasting with CMLE” to your list of summer activities!

We especially would like to feature school library people on our podcasts (Linking Our Libraries and Reading With Libraries). We understand it can be tough to get away during the school year so we want to make sure you have an opportunity to come record with us when it fits your schedule.

A big majority of our members work in school libraries and we want to make sure we are sharing your voices and experiences with your colleagues across our system!

Watch for an email headed your way later this week with more information. Or email me at ajordan@cmle.org with any questions!

Can’t make it to our office?

No problem!! You can still participate!
Maybe you’ve listened to our Book Bites series. That’s when we record around 5ish minutes of a guest talking about a book they’ve enjoyed. If you have a book you want to share, record yourself with your phone or computer and send it to ajordan@cmle.org! We’ll fix it up and use it in our series!

We love to hear about the variety of cool books that our members are reading.

Thank you for being willing to share your love of books and libraries with us and our larger community! We are all stronger when we work together!

CMLE, Communication, General

We Celebrate the life of Patricia Elizabeth Peterson

We love CMLE, the work we do, and the wonderful people across our library system. And a lot of that wonderful work here was started by our first Director: Patricia (Trish) Peterson. She passed away April 2, and we share information below about her life and her many community and family contributions.

“A Celebration of Life will be held at 4:00 p.m., Sunday, May 5, 2019 at Grace United Methodist Church in Paynesville, MN for Patricia Elizabeth Peterson, age 76, who died April 2 at The Waters of Edina Assisted Living surrounded by family and beloved caregivers. Internment will be at a later date in Iowa City, IA.

A gathering of relatives and friends will be held prior to the service from 2:00 to 3:45 p.m. at the church. A fellowship meal will follow the service. Arrangements are with Wenner Funeral Home in Cold Spring, MN.

Trish was born July 25, 1942 in Iowa City, IA to Gregory and Ruth (Green) Patterson. She married Sylvan Peterson on June 14, 1964 and together they raised two daughters. Trish graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor’s degree from Mayville State College. She earned a Master’s degree in Library Science from St. Cloud State University in 1979. Trish worked at Nekoma and Gackle High Schools in North Dakota; Lester Prairie and Kimball High Schools in Minnesota; and was Director of the Central MN Libraries Exchange. Trish was a member of ALA, AAUW, FEW, Friends of the Library, Friends of the Great River Regional Library, MN Library Association, Cold Spring Lioness Club, the Red Hat Society, and Phi Delta Kappa. After being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2003, she became an active member and contributor to the Parkinson’s Pipeline Project.

Trish was a true partner to her husband, Sylvan, of 55 years. She was a devoted mother, sister, and friend to many others. She will be remembered for her love of fishing and camping, her sense of humor, her strong work ethic, and her never-ending drive to be the best that she could be. Through her long battle with Parkinson’s disease she endured with an uncomplaining strength and grace. She will be dearly missed.

Survivors include husband, Sylvan; daughters, Deborah (Damien) and Christine; grandchildren, Madison, Elizabeth, Max, and Noah; sisters, Jean Prybil and Susan Berry, as well as many nieces and nephews.

She was preceded in death by her parents; brother, Robert Patterson, brother-in-law, Gerald Prybil, sister-in-law Joanne (Smolak) Peterson; niece Kristen Peterson, and nephew, David Berry.

In lieu of flowers memorials are preferred to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research

. P.O. Box 5014, Hagerstown, MD 21741-5014 www.michaeljfox.org

.

Communication

Beyond Politics and Prose: White nationalists target bookstores, libraries in protests nationwide

Wuhan - Chongwen Plaza - bookstore - P1040915

Obviously, we hope this kind of thing never happens in your library – or any other place you might frequent. But it’s valuable to be prepared for disturbances of many kinds – even if it’s not actually Nazis invading your programs.

We go out of our way here to emphasize that as an organization we take no political sides, and we always encourage you to make good decisions for yourself. All candidates, and all elected officials, SHOULD support libraries – and we do enthusiastically encourage you to tell them this important pro-library message! We will, however, take a firm anti-Nazi/white nationalist stand. This is not a population likely to ever support good library funding and service (along with so very many other upsetting positions they take).

Think about your own disaster planning. We’ve talked about this several times across our website, and on our podcast. If your library does not have a disaster plan, send us an email! (admin @ cmle.org) We can help you to get started, and to make up a document that is relevant to your specific library needs.

So we put in an excerpt of an article below, and encourage you to read through the rest on their website by clicking here.

“When a group of self-avowed white nationalists interrupted an author chat Saturday at bookstore Politics and Prose with a megaphone and chants of “This land is our land,” workers were surprised — but not unprepared.

The Northwest Washington bookstore began training employees earlier this year to respond to flash protests, co-owner Bradley Graham said. The decision came after previous author events, including a talk last month by former homeland security secretary Janet Napolitano, drew the ire and attention of left-wing activists and agitators.

Politics and Prose isn’t alone.

Bookstores, libraries and book fairs have become frequent targets of white nationalist groups, who in recent years have interrupted author talks, children’s reading hours and, in one instance, threatened to burn down a bookstore in Berkeley, Calif.

“One of the issues is we can’t always anticipate what author or event might draw protesters or a demonstration,” Graham said. “Clearly, when the political climate heats up, there would seem to be more kindling that could be lit. But whether this will translate to more disturbances at author talks, I certainly hope not, but who knows.”

“…Graham said he hadn’t expected the talk by author Jonathan M. Metzl — who was discussing his book, “Dying of Whiteness: How the Politics of Racial Resentment Is Killing America’s Heartland” — would attract much attention.

“We have to accept that a lot of this may just be unpredictable,” Graham said.

Metzl’s book explores how some lower- and middle-class white Americans are drawn to politicians who promise to improve their quality of life while also promoting policies that place white Americans at greater risk of illness and death.

“…When protesters arrived Saturday, Metzl said he was talking about a man in the bookstore audience who helped his father and grandparents escape the Nazis.

“I was saying how much stronger America is when we think about our responsibility to people in need. At that point, the Nazis walked into the talk,” he told The Post. “It was very symbolic for me.” “

Communication, Resources

I want you to take James Patterson’s Money!

If you have even been near a best seller’s book-list in the last decade – whether or not you have read anything – you have heard of James Patterson. Not only is he a prolific writer, but he started the trend of famous authors partnering with other authors to bring forward their books. I saw an estimate that Patterson ears $90 million PER YEAR.

So when that guys offers up money to school libraries, know that it’s literally pocket change to him. When you enter his sweepstakes to win money and books for your school library – you aren’t going to break him at all. He’s fine.

Your library, on the other hand, can DEFINITELY use a few hundred dollars worth of books!!

I would love to see every single school in CMLE entering this sweepstakes, to see if you can win!

ENTER HERE!

4,000 Teachers Will Each Win
$250 and 250 Bonus Points*

500 New Teachers Will Each Win
$500 and 500 Bonus Points*

Here are their FAQs:

James Patterson and Scholastic Book Clubs Giveaway
$125 Million and 1.25 Million Bonus Points for Classroom Libraries

What is the Patterson Partnership sweepstakes?

For the fifth year, James Patterson and Scholastic Book Clubs are teaming up to bring books into classrooms throughout the country. The sweepstakes will award $250 and 250 Bonus Points to Teachers (4 or more years of experience) and $500 and 500 Bonus Points to New Teachers (0 to 3 years of experience) to create and improve their classroom libraries. How are winners selected?

Teachers enter the sweepstakes by filling out a questionnaire at: scholastic.com/PattersonPartnership.
Winners are then randomly selected from those entries. How many teachers entered the sweepstakes last year?

There was a total of 127,300 teacher entries. Who is allowed to enter?

Anyone who meets these criteria is encouraged to enter:

  • Current legal resident of the 50 states or the District of Columbia
  • Actively teaching in any grade from PreK through 12th grade in a US school

When does the sweepstakes run?

Teachers are allowed to enter anytime between 9 a.m. ET on April 1, 2019, and 11:59 p.m. ET on July 31, 2019. How are winners notified?

On September 5, 2019, winning teachers will receive an email and a hard-copy notification letter delivered by USPS. How can I see the names of winning teachers?

The list of winning teachers will be posted at: scholastic.com/PattersonPartnership How will winning Teachers receive the $250 grant and winning New Teachers receive the $500 grant from James Patterson?

The winning Teachers and the winning New Teachers will choose either a direct deposit into their Scholastic Book Clubs account or a check sent via USPS. Teachers will receive a notification email and a hard-copy notification letter with detailed instructions on how to select their preferred method of delivery (direct deposit or check) and where to update their information. When will the winning Teachers receive the $250 grant and the winning New Teachers receive the $500 grant from James Patterson?

  • Teachers who request to have the award direct-deposited into their Scholastic Book Clubs account will receive the funds within a week of responding to the notification email.
  • Teachers who request to have the award sent as a check via USPS will be required to complete a personal W-9 form and must allow up to two months of processing time.

Is there an advantage to receiving your grant by direct deposit?

Yes! Teachers who choose direct deposit will have access to their funds sooner.

Additionally, teachers who opt for a physical check will be responsible for submitting a W-9 form for tax purposes. How will the winning Teachers receive the 250 Bonus Points and the winning New Teachers receive the 500 Bonus Points from Scholastic Book Clubs?

The 250 or 500 Bonus Points will be directly deposited into winning teachers’ Book Club accounts. If a teacher does not provide a valid Book Club account number on the original entry form, then we will either find the account number or create a new account for the teacher.