Over the last few editions, the News Bulletin presented its annual ‘year in review’, a compilation of the biggest stories from our pages over the past 12 months.
Typically, we also select a ‘story of the year’, decided through newsroom discussion and debate over which story most affected the community.
Instead this year, we supplemented the look back with a few extra compilations – the triumphs, the tragedies, the issues and the oddities, the last of which are presented in today’s newspaper, the first edition of 2012.
We still have story-of-the-year selections from each of our news reporters, although these individual perspectives are published as web exclusives (please go to www.nanaimobulletin.com to read them).
Ultimately, what we’re trying to accomplish through all this looking back is not just to recap the various interesting things that happened last year.
Sure, it’s entertaining (and hopefully interesting) to be reminded of the various issues, some seemingly trivial and others more consequential, that for whatever reason grabbed the interest of people in our community.
But it should also be an important learning experience.
As the philospher George Santayana wrote, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
The full context of his statement informs us that in order to move forward effectively and cohesively as a community, it’s necessary to not only look back and reflect, but also build upon our past decisions and experiences.
We fail to do so at our own peril, or, as Santayana said: “when experience is not retained, as among savages, infancy is perpetual.”
