Maureen Kelley and Mary Stackpole in front of the replica whaling ship, Lagoda, in the Azorean gallery at the New Bedford Whaling Museum. This was the third and final “Fun Fridays” cultural event of the summer. Watch for a new lineup of cultural outings for the fall.

Life in the Ville 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)

My fear of the first day of school changed entering grade 9 in 1968. I was going to public junior high fter eight years of parochial school. Let me elaborate a little. Eight years of bossy, grouchy, mean spirited nuns. I still can’t believe my parents paid good, hard earned money to send their three kids to a place where they were berated, embarrassed and abused. I got off easy, but some of the poor kids may have been scarred for life.

Three Somerville High School students have been arrested in connection with a sexual assault that took place in Otis this past weekend.

Berkshire District Attorney David F. Capeless says 17 year old Galileo Mondol and two 16 year old juvenile males were arrested today by Massachusetts State Police detectives assigned to his Office.

By Jim Clark

A police officer on his way to work by car around 4:30 a.m. on Monday morning took notice of three males as they walked along the sidewalk near 282 McGrath Hwy.

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)

For the letter of the Law kills, but the Spirit gives life.
—II Corinthians 3:6

 The fundamentalists of the religious right declare that every letter of their respective holy texts is literally true, inerrant, and must be obeyed. But the texts themselves say that it’s the Spirit that should be obeyed, not the letter.

School Committee member from Ward 5 Mark Niedergang.

By Harry Kane

During the School Committee meeting on Monday the most significant topic of conversation concerned the number of new teachers in the Somerville school system, according to Ward 5 School Committee member Mark Niedergang. The total number of new teachers is 53.

By Jim Clark

Police were summoned to a Beacon St. location last Thursday night on a report of an indecent exposure incident.

Officers were met by the reporting parties, a male and female, and were told that a man who was standing on the steps of a Beacon St. residence had been exposing his genitals in public.

By Joseph A. Curtatone

(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)

Change is inevitable. It’s also necessary. Faced with the greatest demographic shift since the 1950s, when people fled cities for the suburbs, Somerville is in a unique position to benefit from today’s demand for walkable, transit-oriented urban neighborhoods. At the same time, we want to preserve what we already love about Somerville—the diversity, character and culture that sets our city apart. That juxtaposition between transformation and preservation lies at the heart of every debate about new development in the city, but in fact they are not in conflict at all. Because planning for the evolution of our city and preserving what we love now about it are both, at the most fundamental level, about where and how people want to live, and they both share the same core value: building community.

Somerville Police Detectives, with the assistance of the NEMLEC (North Eastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council) Swat Team, arrested Alex Gomes at his home located at 298 McGrath Highway in Somerville early this morning.

The candidates for the primary election on September 24 for School Committee for Ward 5 were each asked four questions and invited to describe themselves and their vision for how best to serve their ward as School Committee members. Their responses are presented here in alphabetical order, based on their last names.