As for a culture shift in libraries. I heartily agree, especially at mine. A rearwards, organizational centric view is never, ever a good thing.

At the Medical Library and at my own library, Consumer Health, we are emulating our SL colleagues in the exploration of new information objects – and daily, we cross international and disciplinary boundaries to provide services, engage in discourse about the changing nature of information, about libraries as spaces, and on and on… We are starting up a librarian CE group in order to share research and discovery between multitype libraries, led and motivated by Lori Bell of the Alliance Library System in Illinois, and other innovative leaders. But that’s only a tiny part of what’s going on.

Take time to explore and engage – and then share our excitement, and add to the discourse in which we are engaged.

I also disagree with the original response in its broadly general statements about libraries being nonresponsive, slow to change, and not involved in outreach. These statements can be refuted in every state in the nation by librarians who are involved in creating change.

Certainly, there is room for criticism – I support the need for our culture to shift toward one of reflection and evaluation, and that has indeed been a slow-paced train. But I see change. I know innovators and dreamers and planners and loud soap-box shouters (ok, maybe not that last bit!) – but we ARE out there, and we ARE workig toward the future.