Hm… I have to admit that this is not an area I am very familiar with…
Does public library simply refer to the source of funding, or does it mean we all as homeowners own our little slice of the library? And if so, does that give us any rights to act different when the custodians of the property set rules versus our behavior at the mall?
I said “private property” only because I have memories of assuming places were public only to find out that legally they really were private property. Example: cops around here treat traffic offenses in the mall parking lot different from on the street because it’s private property. Would the police treat the library parking lot different from the mall parking lot?
(for the record, the OP never said it was a public library though that’s a reasonable assumption)
Oooh … behold the internet tough guy in his native habitat.
If there is a convenient place where smoking is allowed, I will. If the bylaws are of the type where there is no “legal” place to smoke except the middle of the road, I’ll ignore those bylaws. I’ve taken a page from the NRA playbook, and I don’t compromise or attempt to appease non-smokers anymore.
For what it’s worth, if it was a private library, I would respect a no-cell rule more and simply vote with my wallet by walking out. For a public library, I still see no reason to respect that rule at all.
Seriously? A mall parking lot is private property. A public library is public property. Not all behaviors allowed on private property are allowed on all public property (my elementary school, public property, doesn’t allow adults to come in unless they’ve checked in at the front office and have a valid reason for being on property; the local mall, private property, doesn’t allow people to run around and kick a soccer ball).
Are you for real not clear on the differences between public and private property?
At the federal courthouses in New York City, you’re actually required to turn over your cell phone before you enter. You can pick it up on the way out.
I think this is more because they don’t want cameras in the courtroom than because they don’t want anyone talking on a phone, though.
I think a lot of people don’t grasp the difference between “public place” and “public property”, and so don’t grasp that a “public place” can be “private property”.
This is a distinction we had to repeatedly explain to loitering teenagers when I worked in a convenience store. “No, this is private property. The sidewalk on the other side of the parking lot is public property”.
Without further clarification from the OP, I assume the spirit of the rule pertains to people talking or otherwise making noise. If someone was in the stacks somewhere texting, no one would even know. Of course there are other things one can do with their phone, such as **Athena **already mentioned but the problem is all the inconsiderate assholes that ruin it for everyone else and because a large portion of society chooses not to conduct themselves it’s easier to just ban them outright than to pick and choose which functions can be used.
It just isn’t that clear cut to me–I’m not a lawyer and there are some nuances that escape me.
Besides, it’s a red herring. If the people who work there don’t want me to do something I will have to stop. If I assumed public vs. private gave me special powers, I could get in plenty of trouble at the police station, presumably a public facility.
Yours is the same flimsy excuse used by smokers who get told by the security guards at the downtown transit center to put their cigarettes out while on the premises. They are of the mindset that because they would have to walk soooooo farrrr (and possibly miss their bus or train) to legally light up, they’ll just light up then and there. Selfishness and entitlement.
Sorry (not), but times have changed since the days that the news anchors on the teevee box would deliver the evening’s headlines with a lit cigar on the desk. Most of American, Canadian, European, and Oceanian society has, thankfully and rightfully, moved on from the leisurely consumption and spread of hazardous gases and solids, and have decided to use the force of law to forbid the assault of non-consenting noses and mouths with such.
It’s a public health issue. Get with the program and govern yourself accordingly.
Right, it’s the “no talking on the cell phone.” When I was a child, listening to other people’s telephone conversations was considered the height of rudeness. Today, it’s unavoidable.
This afternoon someone talking on her damn cell phone plowed into me, and I damn near fell. Her excuse? “Oh, I didn’t see you there.” I’m thin, but I am not fucking invisible.
I missed the part where I threatened physical harm with someone who disagreed with me. Other than that … well, no, that just wrecks your comparison.
No. If I get a ticket or charged, I’ll fight it in court. I’m practicing civil disobedience, which means both breaking the law and being willing to face the consequences.
Anyways, now that Annie has confirmed it’s talking on a cell phone, not mere possession that her library is banning, I’m finding it hard to get worked up over. Librarians going “shhhh” is about as played out as it gets. I think that banning the device instead of the problematic behavior is probably ineffective, but that’s just my opinion.
I have a feeling that I am not the only person who told one of the owners of the antique mall where I rent space that his 8-year-old son could not be constantly walking around playing games on his phone, because he was eventually going to knock over a display and potentially damage thousands of dollars’ worth of merchandise, in addition to possibly seriously injuring himself.
May your selfish butt lose and get a good education from the judge on how civilized society works, including why it’s not okay to assault others with hazardous output.
“Do as you’re told because no right exists to put the health of others at risk.”
Crazy Canuck, you can go for your slow motion suicide all you want, after you climb into a air tight bag. I’ll even zip you up. Keep your Haz-Mat to your self.
I’m watching my two year younger cousin die semi-slowly of two stage 4 cancers. You will get no sympathy from me when that atom of Potassium 40 splits and cleaves some of your DNA in a Darwinian way.
I think it is time to start installing phone booths all over the lpace. A quiet space one can go to to make a phone call. An old idea whose time has come again.
You’re not threatening physical harm; you’re causing actual physical harm. Unless you know the health history of everyone in your immediate vicinity, including who they’re going home to with your cigarette smell clinging to their clothes and hair, you have no way of knowing whether or not you’re in the clear to practice your civil disobedience stupidity and only negatively impact yourself.
You responded to Amateur Barbarian’sremark (obvious hyperbole) by calling him an internet tough guy yet your whole stance is that the rules don’t apply to you. You “won’t compromise or attempt to appease the non-smokers” and you’ll smoke wherever you want. Er, no you won’t.
Don’t get me wrong, I feel your pain. I smoked for many years and even though I mostly only vape now, it’s annoying as hell sometimes to deal with all the smoking restrictions. But that’s the world we live in and it’s not swinging back to smokers being the majority. You won’t win the battle; you’ll just look like a jerk for trying.
I was on the long distance bus coming back from Taipei last night. Everyone was sleeping and some asshole gets a call that is soooo important she’s got to take it and then keep screaming into it because you can’t hear the phone so well and you naturally adjust your voice to that level.