Krishnaswamy

Hi,

I am currently studying in pune and I was a member of the Trivandrum library for 10 years.I believe that closing down the British library is a highly deplorable. The world is becoming increasingly insular and combative, where there is general distrust among humans and intolerance among different groups and makes us suspect if we are going back to an era which we all thought human civilasation had passed through. You might think what is this got to do with retaining a library. And i say, libraries are the main windows to tolerance and a healthier outlook. I feel if people knew more about each other, hatred will give way to sympathetic understanding and we can all move towards an age where we spend our energies on more creative things.

If the British library is closed down, it means

1. our interaction with the outside european world diminishes considerably.
2. Students' access to information is cut down
3. The mere pleasure of reading is confiscated from readers.

I greatly appreciate the efforts that are being done. I hope this succeeds. In times of despair, I tend to be fatalistic about the whole thing. But that is not what we need. We need hope. Our hope should be equal to the task. I personally feel libraries are the first step towards a healthier and a happier world.

If i may offer a few suggestions,

I think media coverage would help the cause. Probably, some big international intellectual personality might help as well. (someone like arundhati roy)