Posted on: Thursday, March 6, 2003

EDITORIAL
Library woes won't be solved with harsh talk

The torrent of harsh words falling around the ears of state Librarian Virginia Lowell may be therapeutic to those uttering them, but they will do little to help our public library system with its budget struggles.

Lowell apparently has got the goat not only of Gov. Linda Lingle but of several state senators. Our hunch is that this is not entirely accidental.

Already smarting from several years of cuts to the library budget, Lowell says the latest round may be more than the system can stand.

In response to the latest cutbacks, Lowell said she would put all libraries on a one-shift, 40-hour-week schedule. The result, in many cases, will be libraries that are closed on weekends and evenings.

That's a surefire way to make the customers howl. Lowell made no bones about the fact that this was her intention.

"The real solution here is to put pressure on the lawmakers to adequately fund the library system," she told The Advertiser.

This approach, Lingle said, was "unprofessional." She added to her criticism later by saying Lowell appears to typify bureaucratic intransigence in this state.

Republican Sen. Bob Hogue ramped up the rhetoric even more in calling Lowell "arrogant" and "inflexible."

Now, it may be that Lowell is indeed using customer unhappiness as a kind of human shield in her budget battles with Lingle and the Legislature.

But what do policy-makers expect? All administrators are expected to fight fiercely for their programs. Even Lingle's new appointees, while perhaps more diplomatic than Lowell, have complained that they cannot continue to operate under the budget restrictions they have been given.

These are difficult times. We will not find our way out of them through budget gamesmanship or unpleasant rhetoric.

What must happen now is for both sides to do their best with the situation as it is. For Lowell, this means working with library employees to find solutions that always — always — put customers first. This is the way to win long-term loyalty and political support.

And for the elected officials on the other side of the fence: Cool the rhetoric. Calling someone unprofessional, arrogant, stubborn and inflexible is no way to win cooperation.