In a previous "Between the Lines," I said it was important to read. I stressed the fact that we, as a society and as individuals, don't take enough time to read.

Now I find out that if you live in Plain Township, you are almost hindered from reading at no cost. How so? Plain Township does not have a public library and to use the Warsaw library, you have to pay a fee of $16 for four months or $45 for a year.

I currently live on the edge of Plain Township.

I can afford to pay the money, if I have to. That's not the problem. But what about those who can't afford to pay $45? Those who can't pay that much are those who usually need to be reading more.

As previously stated, the National Adult Literacy Survey found that more than 40 million Americans age 16 and over have significant literacy needs. Approximately 43 percent of people with the lowest literacy skills live in poverty and 70 percent have no job or part-time jobs.

More importantly, I think that any and every township should have a library. A library is as important to any community as the fire, police or emergency service department. A library provides the citizens with knowledge, information and a glimpse of the world.

Providing the citizens of Plain Township will become even more important as the population increases. Plain Township is the fastest growing township in the county so the importance of a public library will become evident sooner than some may want to acknowledge.

Some people will complain that tax dollars shouldn't fund such things. They'll say that a private organization should fund libraries. That's not likely to happen and government should not always expect it. Besides, a library can only help a community and anyone who can't see that probably doesn't enjoy reading anyhow. A library is an investment in the community.

A library encourages citizens to read. It encourages the people to be more informed. It provides books to children who may not have access to books any other way. How can someone not support funding a library or the library itself?

Maybe Plain Township can't afford a public library at the moment. Well, then, they need to start working on getting the funding now. Grants, loans and donations are a few means of getting the money to begin the endeavor. Plain Township needs to have a library.

Perhaps the township doesn't care about whether or not its citizens have enough access to reading material, but I hope not. The mind is a terrible thing to waste and a community without a library is wasting the minds of its youth.

Someone might ask why I'm bringing this up now.

Some years back, I lived in Warsaw and had a library card. I used it frequently to check out books, magazines, CDs and movies. I moved to Indianapolis in 1994 and just moved back at the very end of August this year. Not thinking that I couldn't get a library card in Warsaw because my address is Warsaw 46580, I went to the library to reapply for a card. That's when I was told I lived just across the road from the cut-off line. The lady at the counter told me that Plain Township didn't have a library and I'd have to pay to get one in Warsaw.

I'm not blaming the Warsaw library for any of this. They need to charge "outsiders" for use of the library to generate revenue and protect the library's stock. The Warsaw library is doing what it needs to be doing and we all should be proud of the quality of the library and its employees.

The problem, as I've said, is that Plain Township has not invested in a much-needed library. If they don't want to build one because the taxes would "burden" the citizens, then maybe Plain Township needs to look at other options. Perhaps, as an option, Plain Township could pay the fees of all its citizens under 18 to use the Warsaw library. They could pay that membership until the person reaches 18.

I'm just one person. One person who will probably pay the $45 sooner or later so I can be free to check out any book I want from the library. No one may agree with me that Plain Township needs a library. They could have "more important" issues to deal with. If so, I guess I've said my piece and that will be that.

But if others agree that Plain Township needs to further invest in its future by investing in a public library, then I hope they will not remain silent. I hope they will have the courage to stick their necks out and say, "Plain Township needs a library."

This is the land of the free, the home of the brave, after all. Veterans died in wars so that we can read what we want to, write what we want to and check out whatever we want to from public libraries.

If the township doesn't make any effort, then maybe I should appeal to Bill Gates, the multi-billionaire owner of Microsoft. He could be the next Carnegie and we could name the library "Bill Gates' Library of Higher Learning."

Of course, since he owned the library and not the public, he could be the final word on what people read. He would get to choose if Shakespeare, Voltaire or Marx would be appropriate reads. Maybe he wouldn't approve of the Bible being in the library - that would be his choice then.

Bill Gates could determine what we know.

Now, isn't that better than a public library where the public can read anything they choose? (Place sarcasm here). [[In-content Ad]]