Columns

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of a library? Some people picture a big building full of books, magazines, maybe a few CDs and DVDs. Others recall visiting a library to look up resources for job hunting, research a term paper or peruse college catalogs and travel guides.

The saying “a man’s home is his castle” is so old it predates gender correctness. It means that no matter how humble, unadorned or unesteemed a man’s (or woman’s) house might be, it is his to call her own. It is his to satisfy the needs for safe shelter, desired comfort and life’s big investment. No matter the physical address, it is where he is king (or queen.)

Cold and wet winter days in Sonoma County always flush out news accounts of flooding, fallen trees and dangerous driving conditions. And then there are the stories and reminders of people who are homeless, facing bone-chilling nights on the street, hoping for a cot at an emergency shelter or at least a hot meal or two the next day.

There are many possible labels we could put on the time capsule for the year 2015, but one undeniable title would be “A Very Violent Year.” This is not because of a few highly profiled terrorist attacks. It is because of the mass killings we did to ourselves, a total of 353  multiple-victim shootings that left 12,223 dead people across our bloody urban, small town and rural landscape. This total included 62 attacks on schools, supposedly the safest places in our society.