If libraries were open late they would be filled with homeless people looking for a safe, warm place.
What I’m saying is we need safe warm places for the homeless AND libraries to be open late.
Crazy idea : let’s use churches to accommodate homeless people since you can find them fucking everywhere, surely they’re not used after 8pm, and that’s basically the point of them in the first place, no?
As much as I despise organized religion they aren’t fully to blame for the situation. Some of them have really made an effort.
Religion even at its very very best can’t do that job. That is why we need the government.
As much as I despise organized religion they aren’t fully to blame for the situation.
They are if they don’t pay the taxes that would have been used to help with situations such as this.
Gaming stores for some board games and DnD.
My local one smells like body odor unfortunately
After a short while, the library owners would realize that they could make a lot more money if they served alcohol in the evenings.
That’s called a community centre and used to be pretty common. Growing up we had multiple that were run by the local Catholic organizations, and I think there were also some that were run by the youth branch of the various political parties.
But a key component of such a place being success is having a certain kind of open culture. There’s countries where if you throw 10 strangers in a room and return an hour later, you’ll find 10 strangers on their phone, having not uttered a single word to each other.
People also have a tendency to divide into subgroups and isolate from each other. It’s a step in the right direction and better than no community at all. But it can breed resentment and even violence. That’s a common problem of community centres here.
If we constantly tell people that their primary defining characteristic is their race, or their sexuality, or their nationality, and we tell them that those people are the only ones who can truly get them, then it’s no surprise this results in a culture of isolating into little demographic groups.
I can’t express enough how badly I want this.
It’s really disappointing how much of our space is privatized.
BRING BACK THE THIRD PLACE
Examples of third places include churches, cafes, bars, clubs, community centres, public libraries, gyms, bookstores, makerspaces, stoops, and parks.
Gyms, stores, cafes, etc. aren’t good third places because you’re expected to pay money to be there
sell coffee etc. to pay the bills. all the cool kids are doing it. Libraries are looking for more visitors. Install a Starbucks with tables near the gaming PCs. books and chairs in the corner. Checkout counter is already done, Re: bars, Why do they all have parking lots? AA without the chanting.
Just throwing it out there: most libraries do have one late night day a week, there are probably a million people on earth right at this moment that would love to play a tabletop game with you or take a zoom class, every single area has clubs/associations/charities that would love some new faces.
Don’t expect the universe to give you companionship. You need to do it yourself
I host late night D&D. Or play team sports. Life is what you make it folks.
the death of ‘third place’ locations has had a brutal impact on society
There are still a ton of “third places” – restaurants, bars, and coffee shops are everywhere. They just cost too much money for a lot of people.