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Tuesday, April 29, 2008

04/29/08 - Librarians Are Still Freaking Out Over Freedom Of Speech

LAST:
Librarians Are Supporting Terrorists

Headline:

The Library Has Hired Police For The Event And Has Refused To Promote It — A Move That Dr. Alfred Gerteiny Doesn't Understand.

Quote:

"the substance of the book was too academic for the people who frequent the Westport Library."

Story:

Terrorists Win Again

fairfieldweekly.com, CT

When it comes to discussing the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the Westport Public Library seems to believe that Westporters are either too stupid or too aggressive to handle the topic in a thoughtful and mature manner.

Last summer, retired university professor, author and Westport resident Dr. Alfred Gerteiny approached the library about holding a presentation to promote his book, The Terrorist Conjunction: The United States, the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and al-Qu'ida. Gerteiny told the Weekly that the library didn't approve of the presentation request...

...Readers might remember a few months back when we reported that the Greenwich Library canceled a presentation and deemed it "too controversial" on the srael-Palestinian conflict by If Americans Knew founder, Alison Weir...

...
George Wagner, assistant director for administrative services at the Westport library, told us the reason for requesting police presence was because of what happened when a similar event was booked in Greenwich. "We felt it might be best to have police presence at the event to make sure it stays orderly," says Wagner.

The Westport library, he says, wants to have "an orderly meeting and we do not want people to rush the podium. With this type of topic, tensions can kind of run pretty high."

They tensions can run even higher when the library itself, which is supposed to be a bastion of free expression free of outside pressures, refuses even to promote an event it is hosting and assumes the worst of its patrons....

Shame On The Westport Library:

The Barnes And Noble In Westport Did Not Need To Call In The Gestopo To Monitor This Westport Book Discussion:


BOOKS CALENDAR 11/01-11/07

Connecticut Post

AT BARNES AND NOBLE, WESTPORT

Professor Alfred Gerteiny presents his new book "The Terrorist Conjunction: The United States, the Israeli-Palestinian ...

Please Keep This Book From The Uncivilized Brutes From Westport Who Might Riot In Their Own Library:

Amazon.com: The Terrorist Conjunction: The United States, the ...

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Why are Librarians interfering with their patrons right to Freedom Of Thought (also called Freedom Of conscience and Freedom Of Ideas) is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, independent of others' viewpoints. It is closely related to, yet distinct from, the concept of freedom of expression.

To deny a person's freedom of thought is to deny what can be considered one's most basic freedom; to think for one's self.

Since the whole concept of 'freedom of thought' rests on the freedom of the individual to believe whatever one thinks is best (freedom of belief), the notion of 'freedom of religion' is closely related and inextricably bound up with these. While in many societies and forms of government, there has been effectively no freedom of religion or belief, this same freedom has been cherished and developed to a great extent in the modern western world, such that it has often been taken for granted.

This development was enshrined in words in the United States Constitution by the Bill of Rights, which contains the famous guarantee in the First Amendment that laws may not be made that interfere with religion "or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.

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