By William C. Shelton

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

I’ve been writing about Somerville’s place on the bleeding edge of a growing societal trend. We increasingly substitute name calling for listening to each other, identifying what we have in common, and understanding our legitimate differences.

Among the names that we call each other are “liberal” and “conservative.” No longer terms that accurately describe any consistent or mutually understood political philosophy, these words are increasingly insults used by one group to dismiss the concerns of another.

Off The Shelf by Doug Holder

Edited by Thom Schramm. (Eastern Washington University Press Spokane, Washington 2008) $24.

The “black dogs” of depression are never far outside our gate, as Winston Churchill once wrote. The euphoria of mania and the freefall of depression are known in the field as manic depression. This rapid cycling tornado of mental illness has affected (according to recent studies) poets and writers to a greater degree than the general population. In fact in the New York Times awhile back it was reported that poets and writers, but particularly poets, have a shorter lifespan than the rest of the masses. Could it be we are more prone to suicide or have we just forgotten to take our daily dose of statins?

By Jennifer Hirsch

“You stop liking candy, but you never stop liking chocolate," says Brendan Gannon, 28, owner, founder and sole employee of La Tène Chocolatier. Gannon, who grew up in Maine and now calls Somerville home, creates hand-crafted artisan chocolates with a contemporary touch.

He is self-taught in the art of chocolate. Trained as a stage actor, he spent a brief stint as a DJ and music writer before beginning to experiment with chocolate in his kitchen about five years ago. He worked as an assistant manager at the award-winning chocolate maker L.A. Burdick in Harvard Square for several years. During his tenure at Burdicks he said he was able to garner much chocolate knowledge and even spend a weekend at the New Hampshire location where the chocolates are made.

On The Silly Side by Jimmy Del Ponte

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

The groundhog saw his shadow, so it’s six more weeks of winter. For many years we had our own Groundhog Day tradition down at Barnaby’s, before it became Redbones – I’d stick my head out the front door – and if I didn’t see my girlfriend’s angry face heading toward the bar, it meant that I had time for six more ounces of draft beer.

Gentrification is a touchy subject in this city – from a number of different perspectives. One generalized view is that gentrification in this type of socio-economic environment is an inevitability and that we as a community have to take the good with the bad when it comes to urban renewal. Another is that the displacement of lower-middle class residents who haven’t owned their home for 20 to 30 years tears apart a community like ours.

At the center of this heated battle of ideologies lies a certain group of people in our community – predominately made up of elected officials and developers. All too often, elected officials are accused of being in collusion with developers to push their project through the system with backroom deals and white envelopes – the fact of the matter is that in 2008, you can’t get a parking ticket fixed without someone blowing the whistle to the Ethics Commission. People really need to get the 1960s mentality out of their heads.

By George P. Hassett

When Anthony Holloway took over as chief of the Somerville Police Department last month he said the most common complaint he heard from patrol officers was a lack of manpower on the streets. This week city officials took one step toward addressing that problem by bringing seven new officers onto the force.

Christopher Gomes, Oswaldo Martinez, Yvon Jean Jacques, Fernando Cicerone, Henry Diaz, James Radochia and Guerdy Legros will enter the police academy in February and will hit the streets as Somerville police upon successful completion of the twenty week training program.

By Keith Howard

After almost two decades of delays the Green Line is coming to Somerville, but pedestrians, patrons and business people have yet to reach a consensus on where it may stop.

Engineering consultants and delegates from the city’s transportation department met at the Somerville High School library last week to hear feedback from roughly 100 residents and commuters about potential MBTA stops in the city.

By George P. Hassett

The leadership of the Somerville Police Department was handed over to Anthony Holloway Monday night  in a ceremony that honored outgoing Acting Chief Robert R. Bradley and ushered in a new era for the department.

Bradley, on the force since Aug. 3, 1969, said it was the first time he had seen a formal ceremony celebrating a change in leadership for the SPD. With an honor guard at his side and the United States flag behind him Bradley praised Holloway, Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone and the direction the force is going in.

By George P. Hassett

A partially built house at the corner of Medford and Trull Streets that had been an eyesore for neighbors and a headache for city officials is the subject of an arson investigation after a fire there early Monday morning.

Standing in front of the home at 492 Medford St. on Monday Fire Chief Kevin Kelleher said the building’s status as vacant made arson a possibility.