Library Fines

I hate library fines. I think they are stupid and useless. I owe $6.80 for a book that I checked out in the beginning of the year. I have checked out two books from the library in the four years I have been at this school and I have paid enough in fines to have bought both of them. My point is that library fines are stupid. They really have no point. They claim that fines are to encourage us to return the books on time, but I just hold out as long as possible so I don’t have to pay the fine, but then I end up owing more. Also, they say that they want us to bring back the books so that others can check them out, but if you have an overdue book, they don’t do anything other than charge you. I think that if other people really wanted the book I had checked out, then the librarians would find a way to get a hold of me and ask me to bring the book back. I think that if someone asks to check out a book that is overdue, then the fine should be applied. For example, if it is a book that nobody ever wants to check out then there should not be a fine. I had checked out the same book twice from the library and there was a two year difference from when I checked the book out, but there was nobody else who checked it out in between me. I don’t think that it is right for them to fine someone for a book that does not need to be brought back. Also, I think that they charge too much for fines. I think that it would be better if they can charge you up to the price of the book and the fine would stop there instead of a person owing $100 for a $10 book. It is not fair to the person who has to check books out because they cannot afford to buy them and their only hope is the library, but the library turns around and charges them ten times the value of the book in fines. Its blasphemy! Librarians show no mercy, if you are sick or out of town, or even in the hospital you are expected to pay for the days that you could not have physically been able to come in to the library to return their book. You might suggest that a person should just turn their books in. It looks easy on paper, but there are accidents in life. For any given reason you cannot make it in to the library, if returning the book is even on your mind and then you completely forget about it because your so caught up in something more important and bam! You get hit with pointless fines. It really seems like the libraries are out to get people and take their money. To make matters worse, they try to blackmail you if you refuse to pay your fines. The trick to defeating the librarians is to not worry about what they are blackmailing you with, for example you can’t check out any books until you pay, and if it makes no difference to you then they can’t win. If that doesn’t work you can always cause a seen, if you are loud enough in the library or others to notice, but quiet enough that you are not kicked out you may be able to pressure the librarians into eliminating your fines to get you to be quiet. They are veryhard to defeat but if you are careful, it is possible.