For many, this may not seem like a real problem. Those who live in the warmer states may not acknowledge a cold winter as a reality, therefore dismissing it as a problem. When the coldest temperature one experiences is seventy-two degrees, the last thing on their mind is to be warmer, or care about those suffering through negative-degree wind-chill. Several do not want to claim responsibility for their fellow Americans and the struggles they may be experiencing. Persons who are capable of paying for heat throughout the whole winter may not want to implement a plan that does not aid them directly. These people cannot see past their own lives into other’s, or even into the near future.
The standard of living in America is every American’s problem. It is their responsibility as a county to raise this bar to build a better society. One must remember too that circumstances can change. People move around the country. What happens when an Arizonan moves to Montana and experiences a cold winter without the proper heating? Their original disagreement that the problem is not really a problem is misplaced. Just because something is not affecting one state does not mean that is does not exist in another. Weather is not a constant thing. Many times states experience extremes they are not used too, and what will happen to those individuals if they do not recognize cold temperatures as a problem? Even if those from warm weather states will not recognize the uncomforting effects of cold weather on a family incapable of paying for a fire place, they cannot ignore the fact that hundreds of homeless people die due to the cold every year (Homeless, Poor Freeze in US Cold Wave). This very month, an elderly woman “Dorothy M. Hall, 86, was found dead Thursday morning wrapped in a blanket in her North Brookfield home. Willis Hall, who lives with his mother, told police the house had been without power since Saturday and his mother had complained about the cold Wednesday night”” (Smiley Jr). Once again, the country needs to take responsibility for Americans, whether they are capable or not.
The solution to this problem of freezing families is simple, provide more heat. This can easily be done by burning books. The burning of books would be a temporary solution, ten years maximum, until the scientific community could provide a cheaper solution to the heat problem. Burning books instead of any other alternative, like wood, is better for the environment. Wood is not a safe alternative to the costly natural gas. Several Northeast and Western states have rules to limit wood burning, predominantly when air quality is poor (Koch 1). The average library has 150,000 books. A closed book burns much longer than an open one, at a varying temperature according to how large the book is (Palmer). The solution is quite easy, and is a perfect temporary option, saving many from what Gordon Giesbrecht, a mountaineer, calls an “[unnecessary death, when people] succumb to cold effects long before hypothermia sets in” (Giesbrecht 6).
People may protest to having their books burnt, but the majority of print books are available on the internet or in an electronic form, whether it be on an, iPad, Nook, Kindle, or any other e-reader. Many arguments from the opposition are now a moot point if one takes into consideration how much literary material is available in a technological form. The argument that a lack of reading material would create ignorance is invalid because the reading material is available in other formats besides a paper book. Many of these arguments themselves come from ignorance, because a reader is biased towards the ‘feel’ and ‘smell’ of a book. If these opponents are reading for the experience of a paperback book, and not for the content of such materials they have no place in complaining about the ignorance that is created from a lack of paperback books.
Libraries now offer rentals of e-books very similar to the rental of paper books. The New York Times reported on the move by Amazon to allow library e-books available on the Kindle. It “is a big deal and it’s a big step forward in public libraries being much more central in the whole e-book growth,” said Steve Potash, the chief executive of OverDrive, a large provider of e-books to public libraries and schools. Connecting libraries with the Kindle, the most successful device and the largest e-book bookseller in the business, “is going to bring millions of readers to the public library,” he said” (Bosman C1). Books on tape are also available for rent now from libraries. Although all these solutions appease the complaint of possible ignorance, there are other possible rebuttals from the opposition. Many families are not capable of buying an e-reader because of the very same economic conditions that raised the price of natural gas. There are multiple ways to educate oneself of the literary classics through the internet. There is an abundance of websites that allow one to read an entire book for free because of the copyright laws. Through the implementation of this solution there are also many ways to make literary works available to everyone.
This solution will be a government-run operation. It is a temporary solution, with a maximum implementation of ten years. This time allows for an improvement in the economy, or the presentation of a better method of providing heat. All existing book stores will keep their current employees, allowing no loss of jobs, and follow a set pricing system for all sales of books. Instead of selling books for reading, they will sell books for burning. All libraries will become centers for distributing books to the homeless, and the county will continue paying for the salaries. If there are states that do not need additional heat during the winter, the books will be shipped to other stores. The individuals who work in bookstores in warmer places will receive the option of relocating to a colder state to continue with their livelihood. Books will only be for sale from October through February, unless the weather is an anomaly, during which books will or will not be sold depending on the weather. There will be a penalty for those who horde books for purposes outside of burning them. Those who have many paper books can sell them back to the government-operated distribution stores so that they may take the profit and buy their books back in electronic form. All of these conditions will work together to end the problem of being too cold, whether it be because of the cost of natural gas, or the fact of one being homeless.
Many times though, those who are burdened financially will not be able to afford e-readers. To solve this, e-readers will all be lowered in price and become available for rent from libraries for months at a time. This should cover all of the possible problems that could occur from burning the books. The worry that the book supply will be depleted before the ten years is up is unnecessary because there are currently millions of books in print, and they are being rationed only in specific months. This plan will not harm the authors because they can still write; only their books will be published in an e-book format and not on paper. The printing mills who publish these books can still print other forms of media such as newspapers and magazines. This solution only uses books because they are easily replaceable in the electronic world. The future implications of this solution are only positive ones because of the time cap on the implementation of this scheme. The only consequence of this solution is that lives may possibly be saved, and many more will be made comfortable.
The root of this problem—the bitter cold of winter—cannot be solved by any man made means. The weather has been untouchable by man. But, the response to this problem should be automatic; something the first man knew how to do: provide heat. How to provide heat though is the problem. The solution comes when one looks for an abundance of a preexisting fuel. Wood fires have been proven to be bad for the atmosphere, and one’s health, not to mention how destructive this would become to forests if every American embraced this alternative. Many alternatives are even more expensive to supply. And what of the homeless who cannot afford any source of heat? Is America supposed to let them freeze on the streets because it cannot provide an alternative solution? The implementation of this plan is near flawless. It takes something that is in abundance, is replaceable, and is available everywhere, and puts it to good use.
The burning of books is an excellent solution. Because how many Americans really read books anyway? The academic community consumes them wildly, but beyond schools and intellectuals—who reads books? Magazine sales have risen in the last couple of years. Video games sales are at an all-time high. There are hundreds of apps to be downloaded onto a smart phone for the owner’s entertainment. But who reads books? People worry about ignorance and the degradation of society through the loss of knowledge, but what about a society that does not encourage this absorption of knowledge in the first place? How are the children of today supposed to be the leaders of tomorrow if they spend all their time, not speaking to their families, but instead staring at a video screen? And why should it matter if one reads a paper book or an e-book, as long as they are reading? Why must people pass judgment on how others read? They are reading; expanding their minds, building upon previous knowledge, learning to create and discover new things. After all “A book is a loaded gun in the house next door. Burn it. Take the shot from the weapon. Breach man’s mind” (Bradbury 58).
Bibliography
1. "Douglas County Libraries Search Results." Douglas County Libraries Catalog Home. Web. 22 Nov. 2011.
2. "Homeless, Poor Freeze in US Cold Wave." World Socialist Web Site. International Committee of the Fourth International, 5 Feb. 2003. Web. 22 Nov. 2011.
3. Palmer, Brian. "What's the Best Way to Set Fire to a Book? - Slate Magazine." Slate Magazine - Politics, Business, Technology, and the Arts - Slate Magazine. 08 Sept. 2010. Web. 22 Nov. 2011.
4. Smiley Jr., Colneth. "Woman with No Heat Dies in Her Sleep - BostonHerald.com." Home - BostonHerald.com. 04 Nov. 2011. Web. 22 Nov. 2011.
5. Bosman, Julie. "Kindle Connects To Library E-Books.." The New York Times 22 Sept. 2011, New York ed., C1 sec. Print.
6. Giesbrecht, Gordon G. Hypothermia, Frostbite, and Other Cold Injuries: Prevention, Survival, Rescue and Treatment. Seattle, WA: Mountaineers, 2006. Print.
7. Hawke, Whitney, Max Davis, Bob Erlenbusch, and Michael Stoops. "Number of Homeless Deaths." Dying without Dignity Homeless Deaths in Los Angeles County, 2000-2007. Los Angeles, CA: Los Angeles Coalition to End Hunger & Homelessness. Print.
8. Kliesen, Kevin L. "Rising Natural Gas Prices and Real Economic Activity." Editorial. Federal Bank of St. Louis Review Dec. 2006. Print
9. Koch, Wendy. "Pollution Risk: More Homes Heat with Wood USATODAY.com." News, Travel, Weather, Entertainment, Sports, Technology, U.S. & World - USATODAY.com. USA Today, 10 Nov. 2011. Web. 13 Nov. 2011.
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