I don't see much in that article to support "the death of the public library" hyperbole. It's easy to forget that $80 a year is a LOT of money for most people.

I don't see much in that article to support "the death of the public library" hyperbole. It's easy to forget that $80 a year is a LOT of money for most people. When you are in technology, it's hard for you to understand how few people still are in the world that don't have internet access or computers. I was a member of a library advisory board in my city and the circulation rate and number of checked out items continues to climb. The ultimate death of the public library probably won't come from some advance in technology but in the continued short-sightedness of local politicians who continue to underserve the poor and lower classes of their communities. Politicians see the libraries as easy ways to cut money from the budget, ignoring the fact that people who can't afford a computer and always on internet are the ones who need the library the most. In this day in age, it's getting harder and harder to get a job without a computer. If the library goes away, the unemployed poor are crippled. The public library isn't just a place to get books. Just because you can get unlimited books on the Kindle won't mean the library is useless and articles like this only add to the fire that politicians use to justify decreasing funding for public libraries.