Do the police call you whenever they run a check on your licence (like when requested by an Insurance company)? Does the credit bureau tell you every time someone runs a credit check on you? Are you claiming the librarians would suddenly be FOR this idea if the Feds had to call you and tell you they looked at your records?

Actually, any time I've had my licensed checked (which I had happen about three times when I was shopping around for insurance) or my credit checked (cell phones, various store credit cards), I was told that they were going to check said information while I was in the store, and I had the right to refuse the check if I wanted to.

Granted, it's very similar to getting patted down at the airport - you can refuse it, but if you do, don't expect to get any service. But I don't see this extending to the library situation because essentially everyone already HAS the service.

Look at it this way - when privacy policies change for nearly anything else (banks, eBay, credit cards, what have you), the company (AFAIK) *has* to send you something telling you what's changed and what can happen to your information, and give you the opportunity to decline the changes (thus, often, ending your service). Why should the libraries be any different?

(I don't believe the idea of destroying the daily records and all of that is the best idea I've ever heard, but the libraries that are making their patrons aware of the PATRIOT act are certainly doing what I'd consider a good job.)