It occurred to me last night as I was reading some Borges, one thing I would never do, were I leading a barbarian horde in ancient times – destroy my enemies’ library. I can see the plundering of loot, destruction of crops, enslavement, and even crueler methods of killing off the first born, or thinning blood lines through rape, but why the fuck would you burn down the library? I would assimilate the library! Even if all of your enemies were reading garbage, or the same old thing, you’d be bound to pick up an esoteric volume or two with each conquest. Even if you couldn’t read the texts, someone you overpowered along the way would be able to – which also calls for a moments pause before slaying your way through those wimpy captured sages. The “ignorance is power” argument they must have been using just doesn’t stand up to the “knowledge is power” cliche of our information age. At the very least…knowledge is more fun. But I’m probably underestimating the barbarian pyromaniac factor. And when you stop to consider an art gallery is much like a library, and each musician is much like a library, and really, each mind is much like a library (…well most of them), soon you’ve seriously curtailed your barbarian license.