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Recently we had a visitor from the east coast, a friend of over 30 years whom we see a few times a year, but never out this way.

“The Last Lion, Winston Spencer Churchill: Visions of Glory, 1847-1932,” by William Manchester. 973 pages, illustrated. Volume I of his detailed biography gives us the years of his early education, the pathos of his neglect by both parents (his American mother an adventuress and courtesan of the Prince of Wales and future King of England, but influential in promoting her son into an ambitious career), and his time as head of the British navy – and as general busybody in preparing all the armed forces for the onslaught of the Great War in Europe. The vast scope of his life includes an informative picture of the social conditions of his time and creates a large canvas of the world in war and peace, leading us to: “The Last Lion, Winston Spencer Churchill: Defender of the Realm, 1940-1965,” wherein this leading figure is considered to have saved civilization from the madness of the Teutonic hordes which had again overrun Europe in their quest for lebensraum and Aryan purity. His own search for help as England  underwent a blitzkrieg of rocket bombs brought him into constant meetings with Franklin Roosevelt and later Josef Stalin before the final end to the hostilities. In all, the books bring us into contact with a wide cast of world characters equal to any you might find in all the annals of war and peace. Just read it.

Vote 'yes' on Measure BB

In terms of police violence, let's be proactive