To belabor a point that no one here will dispute: certain investments of public money can serve to both stimulate the economy now, and build a healthier, more sustainable society going forward. Green energy and infrastructure repair are the most cited examples, along with health care and education. I'd like to propose another - books.
I hope I don't have to argue the value of books here at dailykos. Books contain the wisdom of the ages, they are as fundemental a part of wo/mankind's heritage as the seven wonders of the ancient world, the art of Da Vinci, or the music of Beethoven. I almost added "the poetry of Shakespeare" to that list, which is precisely my point, but let's not forget that books have been crucial to the developement of science and technology, not just the world of "letters".
Right now the publishing world is in crisis. Jobs are being lost daily as publishers cut back production and bookstores close. As with any "industry", as book sales decline there is a ripple effect as less money is spent on advertising, shipping, design, printing, not to mention the personal and professional expenses of everyone who ends up being laid off.
So, let's kill the proverbial two birds and invest a billion dollars a year, chump change these days, on seeing that books get printed and sold. Now as much as I'd personally like to pick out a billion dollars worth of books and send them to friends, neighbors and enemies, that's obviously not going to fly - even with democrats. On the other hand, I know just who could do that - your friendly, neighborhood librarian! Or everyone's.
Which brings me to my proposal - a fund of two billion dollars a year to be distributed directly to all public libraries in the United States, for at least five years. (With, perhaps, another billion specifically for university libraries.) I suggest two billion because libraries need money for construction, jobs, equipment, etc. as much as they need money for books. So we give them two billion, and mandate that half of that be spent on books. On top of that we mandate that at least half of the money to be spent on books be spent directly in bookstores and not with either publishers or wholesalers. That's what makes it a job maker.
Some points: first, it has to be over several years. Books are a seventeen billion dollar a year industry, so just one billion will have a significant impact on the industry. If, however, we just buy a billion dollars worth of books all at once, it will only serve to enrich the large corporations who own most major publishing houses. They'll sell off their inventories, print the additional volumes they need, and consider it a windfall. But, if publishers know that this money will be spent every year, then they will need to keep buying new titles, which requires editors, marketing and distribution, new production, and so on.
That is also why there has to be the buy from bookstores clause. Bookstores themselves simply need the business, and will thereby be able to at least keep current employees employed. Beyond that there is a whole world of traveling sales reps who present the books to individual book stores, and, not so incidentally, spend a lot of time and money on the road, at hotels, restaurants, and so on.
It's a classic case of real world trickle down. The librarians will keep their jobs, they'll employ people directly and indirectly through construction, puchases of manufactured goods, and purchases of books, which in turn will promote job creation by publishers and booksellers. And, by the way, it might help turn someone onto reading - who might then start voting democratic, so that better laws are passed, so that...
I rest my case.
In the spirit of full disclosure, however, I will mention that I do have some financial interest in a bookstore I will not now name. And, my mother has recently published her first book (at 83), and I do believe there should be a rider attached to the bill mandating that no library without her book can have their federal funds. Or not.
I will say, however, that all you kossacks should do yourselves a favor and buy Barbara Bick's WALKING THE PRECIPICE (no link on purpose, not promoting any particular store, although if you want to buy a signed copy from me see the ad on Juan Cole's site). It's a memoir of her three trips to Afghanistan, one during the last days of the communists, one to see the condition of women under the Northern Alliance in September 2001 (yes she was in Ahmed Shah Massoud's compound on Sept 9 when he was assassinated by Al Queda), and finally to see how women were fairing in the "new" Afghanistan after the Taliban were overthrown. It will teach you something about the country and the status of women there through these different periods, and it's really a page turner. Enjoy.