Thinking about Dan Brown's books...

Having just completed Angels and Demons and The Da Vinci Code, I must now take a moment to reflect on the general themes of both books. I have never read any other Brown book and cannot speak to them, but regarding these two, I have a grasp of their meanings.

Angels and Demons has the basic theme of science versus religion/faith. Such a meaning is not hidden at all and is evident as one reads the book. This debate has been one of the cornerstones of Western thinking since the days of the Enlightenment when the very foundations of the Church were shaken by the re-emergence of scientific rationale. While not nearly as controversial as The Da Vinci Code, Brown brings into question the possibility of whether science can explain the creation of existence in logical terms devoid of religion. This is a hot topic for sure and one that all scholarly people should engage in at least once in their lives.

The Da Vinci Code has a message that is a bit less obvious. Many seem to think the theme is the credibility of the Church regarding nearly two millennium's worth of cover-ups, lies, and deceit. While these are elements of the story, the real theme is facts versus beliefs and power of each to effect human thinking. This is a theme that transcends Brown's adventure-type stories and permeates all of human history. Are beliefs so powerful as to block out obvious facts that contradict beliefs? That is was The Da Vinci Code is about - not about a lie perpetuated by a Church, but what facts, of any kind, can do to beliefs when those facts come to light.

After having read The Da Vinci Code, I formulated this basic philosophy, one that I had always known, but for the first time was able to put into words: The Facts are what they are; the Truth is what you make of it.

Technology as Religion

I’m reading The Da Vinci Code and it forces me to look back to graduate school when we all sat around and debated religion, faith, and the nature of spirituality. Ah, those were the days! I still ponder these notions today; not doing would besmirch the education and training I received as an historian.

Anyway, while reading Brown’s book, I began to contemplate the role that technology plays in our daily lives as opposed to religion. Which receives more attention? The computer screen you stare at daily or the church, temple, or shrine you visit only a few times per week? Have Intel Duel Core processors supplanted supreme deities and have computer work stations become the new alters? Where do you spend most of your time? Reading the Bible, Koran, or Torah, or reading e-mails?

Historically speaking, religion is the oldest form of technology in human existence, created by a social class determined to control the rest, often by means of fear. Now, the same class of people exists, but they exist as the IT Department in your organization. Interesting isn’t it?

Brown raised many interesting points with his books and sparked controversy to this day, especially concerning the possibility that an entire religion is founded on false principles. He asks the reader if it is worth it to expose such frauds for the sake of truth. If at all came crashing down, how would most ill-educated people cope? The same holds to paying homage to our technological deities. When they fail to work, we curse the day they were made, demanding a return to normal function immediately. Did the Israelites not do the same when all when well in the Promised Land and curse God when their expectations were not meet?

I’m supposed to be the Cynical Librarian, and in keeping with a cynical thread, I postulate that the religion of the modern, western world is technology, the priests, the IT people, the church, the Internet, and the prophet, Google itself!! I invite arguments, attacks, and support.

"I did absolutely nothing..."

"I did absolutely nothing and it was everything I thought it possibly could be." This is one of the great lines from the classic film "Office Space". It sums up a great deal of philosophy concisely while at the same time opens many doors for further exploration. Thus it must command our attention, if only briefly.

What is the significance of doing nothing? Can it be done? How do you do nothing at all? Surely one would actually be thinking of something at least, presuming the person is not completely brain dead already. The very concept of nothing is a difficult one to grasp if you try to understand it. Nothing is taken for granted in general as is the concept of eternity, but an attempt to come to a full understanding of either is monumental in a universe of material existence and spiritual givens. Is nothing itself something, or is it totally bereft of all existence? And you can measure the total absence of any and all things? It seems immeasurable to me.

Anyway, just sitting around and doing nothing, as the saying goes, can be quite restful for some and unnerving for others. Some people have to be doing something - they can't just sit around. I can just sit and do nothing for long periods. It serves to recharge my brain for when I have to do something else.

BTW - I looking forward to doing nothing later this evening....

In the Land of the Blind...

My Director said this to me on my way to teach a class last week - "In the Land of the Blind, the One-Eyed is their king." I thought that was quite amusing and said a great deal. I can see how it can apply to any number of situations.

Recently, a colleague of mine in a distant university flew into a rage when her "superiors" came to her with "concerns" regarding her Facebook group and how it was being used to communicate with her student workers. I am paraphrasing, but she said something to the affect that the other supervisors felt as if they were being forced to join her Facebook group. The details are to complicated to fully describe here, but the gist of her rage rests on the reactionary position of her library administrators.

As was described to her, there had not been a complete buy-in regarding using Facebook for library projects. Apparently, as she would no doubt agree, she is forced to live in the Land of the Blind where there is an attempt to blind those with visions of novel approaches to services! The One-Eyed indeed!

If we as librarians are supposed to represent the One-Eyed in a land of the Information Blind, what does it say when the administrators of our libraries seek to put those eyes out? Are we to take steps backwards? This has been the failing of the field for years! We lag behind in technology, and when the few us that see the light reach for it, we are pulled down and chastised! Is it quite depressing on many levels.

It must be noted, in the spirit of fairness, that on the following day, she was allowed to reactive her Facebook group. However, it should not have been stopped in the first place simply because some librarians seek to live in the Land of the Blind.

Toxic Mentors...

My new position as an Academic Reference Librarian and Assistant Professor has put me into a the position of helping out the Circulation and Interlibrary Loan Librarian. This is no big deal seeing as how we fill only about 3-5 requests every two days or so. I have to scan copied articles and turn them into PDFs, so I get to come across some interesting material every once in a while. This just happens to be one of those "once in a while" events.

I scanned this article entitled "What To Do About Toxic Mentors". It is from Nurse Educator, vol. 11, no. 2, March/April 1986, pages 29-30, in case you want to track it down for yourself. The author breaks down toxic mentors into several categories with such names as "avoiders", "blockers", and "destroyers/criticizers". While this is from a nursing journal, I know that it applies to all sectors of the known world. Scott Adams would agree 100 percent.

For me, the most dangerous of the the so-called "toxic mentors" is the "destroyer/criticizer". Let me quote the author directly here so the full impact of this most insidious of people is fully realized. "Even more toxic are the 'Destroyer/Criticizers,' who tear down the junior person in some way. In this group, the Underminers are particularly subtle; it takes awhile to realize what you are experiencing." It must be noted that Underminers are not explained in the article. The example given is that when a nurse began to excel at her job, slowly over time her responsibilities were cut back and her involvement was minimized. Quite interesting.

So, be on the lookout for these "toxic mentors" and other potentially poisonous people. They will bleed you white if you let them.

"You can't handle the truth!"

While I was home over the weekend, the film "A Few Good Men" was on some cable station and I had it on as background noise while eating dinner. I like that movie - I bet the play is even better because theatre is always better than any movie.

Anyway, my wife and I were talking about the election or some such, and I ended up talking about the War. We were talking about waging war on TV and the like and the fact you (a nation) can't win a war on TV because no one wants to know how it is won, just the fact that the war is won. It hit me, suddenly, just what Col. Jessep's speech during the court marshal actually meant. Like a lightning bolt, boom. And to think I've been watching this movie for years and never got it. But I digress...

Col. Jessep says "You can't handle the truth!" And he is right. His speech goes on to say things about walls and men with guns and how freedom is defended by walls and men with guns. He elaborates further by saying (paraphrase here) that deep down inside "you want me on that wall, you need me on that wall" and that "I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to you". The key here in understanding Jessep is this: people want their freedoms defended, but they don't want to know how that is actually accomplished. We won World War II and at the time no one really knew how we were winning until most of the shots had been fired. News was being censored quite well, as were personal letters from the fronts. If WWII had been on TV like Vietnam and Iraq, Europe would be speaking German now.

Anyway, the point of this analytical exercise is the obvious realization of something that I had been expounding on for years - that you cannot win wars on TV. Nations want to win wars, but the people don't really want to know how the wars are won, not until much, much later, when it no longer matters but to academics and armchair generals. Is this a cynical view of a modern, democratic, and supposedly educated society? Some would say so. Others would say it is an statement of how things are. The Abu Ghraib incident is the perfect example. In WWII, we would never have known about it until many years after the fact.

So, the real question is this: can you handle the truth of war, or is it better for you to turn a blind eye and be glad for victory? Think about it...

Starting a new blog off right...

The world has taken a turn for the surreal. I thought that I was a great cynic, but apparently others make me appear amateurish! (Who would have figured!)

I came across the Annoyed Librarian's blog, from the ALA Direct newsletter where she describes library classes that are never offered but should be, and I would have taken them if they were available. Classes such Library Politics would have been quite good as libraries are terribly political places. I suppose that all academia is political, but my experience in libraries has proven beyond all measure that some libraries are dangerous and Machiavellian - houses of depravity, misery, and suffering! I used to work in one such place and still keep in contact with those that languish there in total hopelessness.

In addition to these woefully and ever-wise class offerings that should be provided, I remember reading the musing of one such cynic from an LIS program in California. The title of the document was "Library School Lunacy" and it hits the mark dead on!

Now, I must say that I love being an academic librarian. Otherwise, I wouldn't have gone to library school in the first place. And it says Red Mage because I used to play D&D eons ago and was a neutral mage that wore red robes. I still read Dragonlance regularly. I like helping people find the information they seek for their various tasks and assignments. It is always good to be thanked by students and professors when you find what they need.

I may be a cynic, but I still do my best to fill information needs.