Clayton Mitchell: Libraries and Visionaries

Clayton Mitchell NZ First MP. Photo/supplied

We all know that traditional media are not New Zealand First's biggest support base. In fact, most of the time we come up with a great policy, it only gets reported on when one of the other parties decide to nick it and call it their own. However, I still happen to enjoy the papers, especially when they shine a light on something we might have missed.

This last week, the Bay of Plenty Times, ran an interesting article on the record-breaking use of Tauranga Libraries. Apparently, 10,000 books were issued on January 4th, and "on any given day 65,000 books from the city's libraries are in local homes".

I keep hearing so-called experts talking about how "nobody uses libraries anymore" and "they're a waste of money" and "the world is moving totally over to e-readers". These nay-saying voices were very loud when the long-promised Greerton Library redevelopment was being voted on by the previous Council. The project very nearly didn't happen at all, and the final library had to be a slightly stripped-down version of the original vision, just to get over the line.

Critics of the plan used the quotes above, and the tired old 'user pays' arguments so beloved by this blue government. Why do they only want to focus on the dollars and cents today, rather than the long-term social - and financial - benefits we will all get from having a literate and well-read society?

The libraries that "nobody uses... anymore" are heaving with use, and we, as a community will be better in the future because of them. The visionaries know that a literate and educated society will keep moving onward and upward, and will bring us all along together.

Now, we need Visionaries more than ever. People with other big ideas, who can transform our transport networks, our culture, our city and our country, need our support. Nay-sayers offer nothing. Let's hear it for the readers, the learners, and the visionaries among us.