Public Citizen

Larry Barnett lives in Sonoma where he was elected to three terms on the City Council and served twice as Mayor. A thirty-five-year resident, he currently serves on Sonoma's Planning Commission, where he recently was Chair for two years. Until her passing, he was married to his wife Norma for 50 years, has two daughters and three grandchildren.

Trickle-down housing

Despite its so-called progressive leanings, I guess it’s only logical that the state that gave us Reagan and his trickle-down economics would embrace trickle-down housing; land speculation has always been California’s favorite game, and nothing says boom n’ bust like real estate. In its current... Continue

Relationships edgy?

Returning to being with humans again is throwing us another curve ball. There’s a certain excitement about seeing people but, there’s also edginess. You know, like a person leaving a tiny, ticklish criticism in the midst of a conversation about Christmas plans. The opening of... Continue

What makes a good community meeting?

How do we let our elected officials and various board members at both the county and Sonoma city level know what our opinions and needs are? I have been thinking a lot about this recently because of where we are on the specific plan and... Continue

Saw Carleen stark naked (HA HA)…

Chapter 44: 1947 • Larry’s diary (age 13) Nov 1 Very busy washing windows today. All windows in town were done before noon hour. Nov 2 Sunday: Raked up half the leaves in front yard and mowed lawn. Tore down grape arbor in back Nov... Continue

Squrlz in da hood

When you have a 70-foot Black Walnut in the yard, you have a lot of squirrels. Right now, a clutch of four are scampering around its branches, making a last-ditch effort to find any nuts that have not fallen and grab them before they’re gone.... Continue

Revenge of the normal white people

The dominant narrative of the MSM (Main Stream Media) in the months leading up to the 2022 midterm election never seemed plausible to me. The chief executives of MSM have fashioned a dated political line based on voter modeling going back 40 years, back to... Continue

Floitin’ with Fascism

I know it sounds like the title of a 1940’s one-reel 3-Stooges movie, but America’s flirtation with Fascism ain’t no slapstick comedy. At the mention of Fascism nowadays, most people flash on Hitler and Swastikas and concentration camps, which is too bad, because Fascism is... Continue

A big year for paving in the First District

In my ten years as First District Supervisor I have never, until this year, received so much positive feedback and appreciation from the community on our Sonoma County roads. I’ve received notes from folks driving on Lawndale, Kenilworth, Dunbar, and many more, reaching out with... Continue

The elections are over… now what?

Elections are over and newly elected Sonoma City Council members will soon be taking their seats on the dais. Current Councilmembers Sandra Lowe and Mayor Jack Ding will surely appreciate fresh help in addressing the City's many challenges, opportunities and "Who put this crap on... Continue

The persistence of self

I ran into an old friend at the market the other day, and when I asked him how he’s doing, he replied, “Still an asshole, and you?” We both laughed. We had a nice chat and after he departed I began to think about the... Continue

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