Libraries should be doling out books, not scarlet letters.

Nevertheless, a city councilor in Quincy, Mass., has convinced his fellow board members to consider public shaming as a means to deter patrons from viewing pornography over municipal Internet connections.

While the problem for librarians and library patrons is real and long-running -- if somewhat overblown -- the proposed remedy in this case is wrong-headed.

From a story in The Patriot Ledger:

A resolution, sent to Mayor Thomas Koch, calls for the mayor to forward to the council "a list of the individuals who violated the library's policy against viewing pornographic material within the past year."

(2010's 25 Geekiest 25th Anniversaries)

The council unanimously approved the resolution June 21.

Koch spokesman Christopher Walker said the city's legal department has to review the request.

The city's library director seems to possess the cooler head here:

Ann McLaughlin, Quincy's library director, said library patrons are banned from using computers if they violate the use policy on three occasions. ...

Because there is a three-strikes rule, the library does keep track of who is caught viewing pornography, McLaughlin said. But she's not sure if such information should be made public.

"I would say that it's not the kind of information we would be likely to give out," she said. "Library records have a different protection under the law. Access to what people check out from the library is excluded under the law, so if the police come (looking for that information), they need to bring a subpoena."

And then there are the practical questions: How would librarians know for certain whether a person was intentionally viewing porn or the victim of spyware? It's no big deal when all that is at stake is a warning from the librarian. It's a huge deal when one faces the prospect of public humiliation.

Would there be any due process before the names are made public? Who wants that job?

Would all the names be revealed or just those without enough juice at City Hall or with the library staff to be spared the embarrassment? (That's a rhetorical question because we all know the answer.)

Last question: So how often does the library staff in Quincy, Mass., actually have to admonish a patron about staying off the naughty Web sites?

About "two or three times a year," according to McLaughlin.

In other words, the city council has better things to do.

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