once libraries exist, they want to perpetuate their existence (or jobs, at least) so they chase the popular in search of more library "views" which justifies their existence. I'm not anti library, but this is why they do stuff like lend out power tools.
You make it sound nefarious for them to loan power tools somehow, while it seems like it's just an identified community need niche that they can service that no other organization will, the same as offering free tax advice or ESL classes or anything else.
people criticize "rent seeking" all the time, but the avg person is a rent seeker. Everybody wants stable income/job security, including (especially?) librarians. I'm not calling it particularly nefarious, rather I'm pointing out its nefarity is in keeping with ordinary human nature.
Kind of but they're meeting a need even if it's a bit of an inefficient way to do it. I don't think most library visitors are there for books anymore, at least not where I go. It's adults using the web, kids playing videogames, parents entertaining their kids with the toys, local bored people chatting to the librarians, club meetings, moving screenings, etc. One librarian told me they're really now a "community center" rather than a library and that they don't have that old-fashioned rule of being quiet in the library.