1. United States
2. Mo.
3. Letter

A recent federal judge ruled that scanning lawfully purchased books and destroying the physical copies can qualify as "fair use," provided the resulting digital copies are not distributed. If that interpretation stands, then copying rare or out-of-print works may not be the central issue. The more concerning question is what happens when the physical originals are intentionally destroyed. By destroying books instead of reselling them, donating them to libraries, or making them available to collectors and researchers, companies permanently reduce public access to those works. While comparing this practice directly to the book burnings of World War II or the destruction of the Library of Alexandria is not an exact parallel, it raises a similar concern: the irreversible loss of cultural artifacts and historical records. If AI companies become the primary custodians of digitized works while physical originals disappear, they could eventually gain tremendous influence over humanity's recorded knowledge. Even if current intentions are benign, concentrating so much information in the hands of profit-driven corporations creates long-term risks. Information could be placed behind expensive paywalls, restricted by licensing agreements, or altered over time without the public having access to original copies for verification. Supporters argue that digitization preserves knowledge, but preservation without accountability is not enough. What guarantees that future generations will have unrestricted access to these works? What prevents digital editions from being modified, intentionally or accidentally, while the originals no longer exist? Imagine if the recorded words of Muhammad were altered to convey ideas fundamentally opposed to Islam, or if Martin Luther King Jr.'s speeches were rewritten to distort his message. Imagine Darwin's writings on evolution being edited to better fit changing political or cultural preferences. Without original sources to compare against, future readers could struggle to distinguish authentic history from manufactured revisions. Books are more than containers of information—they are verifiable records of human thought. Destroying them after digitization risks creating a future where access to knowledge depends on a handful of corporations whose primary responsibility is profit, not the preservation of history. The warnings of *1984*, *Animal Farm*, and *Fahrenheit 451* remind us that controlling knowledge is one of the most powerful ways to shape the future.