Wednesday, April 27, 2011

The Beautiful Psuedo-Holiday

And yea, the signage did proclaim:

Earth Day 2011
Over 580,000 Sheets were printed in the library from September 2010 through April 2011.
= 16.67 Reams of Paper
*All signage and displays for Earth Day have been printed with previously used copy paper. All of which was left over from student printing. See the front desk for such scratch paper if you need it.

The irony is thick. In a library, the hallowed scion of learning and reading which has rows upon rows of the nifty devices known as books, a protest echoes forth regarding paper. As is well documented, books are composed of little else then paper, ink, and the mind of the author. Even today, in a world full of kindles and iPads, books at the library are on paper. 
Books bought by the library are paper.
Newspapers and periodicals bought by the library are paper.
The college paper, given away for free, is on paper. 


I'm also not sure as to the math used on this, as I can't figure how a ream of paper approximates to 34,793 sheets of paper. 
Regardless of this math, each and every sheet of paper is paid for in a hidden manner. The cost is not directly evident to the student printing, as up to 20 pages can be printed by each user. If the school was serious was about limiting printing, pass the cost of each print directly onto the user, rather then distributing it to every individual on campus. As it is, I have paid money for the printing of someone else's work, without having printed a single sheet from a printer. Kindly do not lecture me about paper use when I have been compelled to pay for the printing of other students by the college I attend. 

2 comments:

Gino said...

but why arent you using your 20 sheets?
i would use them, for whatever... they are yours. you paid for them.

actually, you probably attend a subsidised school, so no, you didnt pay for them. the productive sector of taxpayers did.

RobertDWood said...

Gino, I have nothing to print.

Actually, I'm going to find things to print now I think.

It is a subsidized community college, yep. :D