Re: “Riptide of funding cuts may mean the end of Scripps library,” (March 24, Page 1. There cannot be a more short-sighted action destructive of the University of California, San Diego than closing the Scripps library. Thomas Carlyle said, “The true university … is a collection of books.” Administrators, professors and students come and go. But the institution remains, and an absolutely crucial element of the institution is the library. — Alan B. Campbell, Ph.D. lives in La Jolla.