Essays by Larry Barnett
We’ve all heard about the certainty of death and taxes. Yet despite the ubiquity of this commonplace notion, few people ever reveal very much about either topic. Talk of death casts a pall over everything, and is a sure conversation-stopper at a party (try it!). When it comes to taxes, everybody complains… Read the rest
Once every decade or so a monumental land-use matter arises in this community which sets the stage for the decades to come. In the 1990s it was the luxury high-end Rosewood Hotels resort proposed for the hillside above the city cemetery, where the open… Read the rest
I suppose that people have always had endless opinions. Roman gladiators probably had many opinions about the ruling class that set them to killing each other. I’m sure those who lived next door to Attila the Hun had no shortage of opinions. I recall a visit my wife and I made to an ancient European fortified… Read the rest
The first of the year marks the anniversary of the 2006 New Year’s flood. Having trundled myself out of bed at 5:30 that morning only to find East Napa Street filled with a foot of water running strongly southwest, I thought to myself that this was no ordinary creek overflow. Unfortunately, it may well … Read the rest
Now that I have set aside my cloak of public office and have returned to the rank of ordinary citizen, it might be useful to consider exactly what some of the responsibilities of citizenship happen to be.
While serving as a councilman, I had the experience of being confronted by confused or angry citizens… Read the rest
Recent cosmological discoveries by leading astrophysicists have generated some astounding new theories about the nature of the universe and our place within it. With the rapid advance of observational technology, up to and including radio/X-ray telescopes and Hubble, our ability to measure the… Read the rest
How can one summarize the experience of 12 years on the Sonoma City Council? Well, for one thing my hair has turned gray. And, wait a minute… 12 years ago I had hair! Consider this; 12 years ago councilman-elect Sebastiani was 14 years old! Congratulations on your election, councilman Sebastiani… I will… Read the rest
I recently attended my fortieth high school reunion. I lived in the same small town for the first 18 years of my life; consequently I’ve known a number of people at the reunion since nursery school and kindergarten. Being 3,000 miles away from my birthplace in New York, I’ve lost touch with most of those… Read the rest
In 1910, like a lot of other refugees from Eastern Europe, my grandfather arrived in America at Ellis Island in New York harbor. Twelve years of age, he had spent 38 days in steerage on a freighter, looking after his eight-year-old … Read the rest
Historians call this current age “modernity;” its defining characteristic is rapid change. Modernity began in earnest with the industrial revolution. When machines replaced man as the primary means of production,… Read the rest
October winds
Announce autumn’s arrival.
Leaves yellow, walnuts drop,
Squirrels nest.
The wise man
Covers split wood.
The rainy season has arrived, and with it the smells and sounds of autumn. The ground itself seems to breathe a sigh of relief after the first rain, its earthen breath carrying the captured… Read the rest
In the 1970s, the notion of “affordable housing” was linked in some minds to what used to be called “Section 8” housing devoted to those on welfare or disabilities caused by drugs or alcohol. In its past attempts to help otherwise indigent people get off the streets, government initiated a variety of … Read the rest
A surprising number of citizens are unaware of the history of Sonoma’s urban growth boundary, or UGB. An understanding of its history adds to one’s appreciation of the concept, and where it fits into the community’s land use and economic planning.
Sonoma was not the first, nor the last city in Sonoma … Read the rest
A rather miraculous thing has happened: all the politicians have turned green. In the past, such a statement would have meant “green with envy” or “green like money” or “turned green with disgust.” Today, however, it means “pro-environment.” At least, that’s how it sounds.
There was a time, not long… Read the rest
There are those who believe that everything can be reduced to mathematics; that underlying the order of the universe is a set of immutable laws that govern all things, and these laws can be expressed mathematically. Thus, the future of humanity can be calculated.
I freely admit that I’m no math whiz. … Read the rest
Sonoma lost two giants a few weeks ago. Towering 125 feet over their domain on Fourth Street East, two twin cypress trees had stood for nearly 100 years, providing shade, scale, character and wildlife habitat. In but two short days they were removed, and a Sonoma neighborhood has been changed forever.… Read the rest