I’m a cool, calm and level-headed person. I’m also a trusting guy and I always look for good qualities in others and remain positive in any situation I’m faced with.

However, I’m steamed nowadays — and worried about what’s going on around me … and all of us.

Shootings, armed robberies, people driving recklessly. Sure, none of this is new, but it seems to be happening more and more frequently these days.

Not just locally, but around the nation and world.

It seems that people have no concern for others, only what satisfies their twisted minds.

And all we can do is sit by and watch as others do as they please and hope none of the madness comes our way. It’s not a great way to live.

I interviewed Kenmore and Bothell police chiefs Cliff Sether and Carol Cummings for my cover story this week about the recent Seattle shootings and what the local departments are learning from it and are dealing with on a regular basis in our towns.

I’m both shocked and perturbed that one man would show a gun after another driver allegedly cut him off in a Safeway parking lot in Kenmore. And flashing a gun and tying up an innocent night manager at the Yakima Fruit Market in Bothell during a robbery is horrendous.

What are these lunatics thinking, bringing innocent people into their deranged world?

Nobody deserves that, especially those who were killed in the Seattle shootings. Just plain wrong.

After speaking with senior pastor Phil McCallum of Evergreen Community Church in Bothell, I agree with his assessment that people need a solid community of friends around them if they’re having a hard time in life. And if not, they should find someone like McCallum to speak with and try and figure things out.

There’s got to be an easier way to deal with problems than opting for violence.

Again, it’s just plain wrong.