Los Angeles is in a heat wave worse than that of a few weeks ago. This is causing acute danger, especially to homeless people, but also to firefighters and people who work in food trucks.

The wrecker's motive for taking home secret documents may have been to threaten the government so it would not prosecute him for other, bigger crimes, such as trying to falsify the election's results.

If the US charges him with the crime of taking those records home and leaving them in an insecure place, that will appear to be a political act. If it does not, that too will appear to be a political act. Faced with the choice, it should take the bold choice.

As we have seen, the Espionage Act needs to be amended to allow a public interest defense so heroes such as Chelsea Manning and Julian Assange will not be convicted. That would have no effect on the wrecker's trial; he cannot point to any public interest purpose for taking those secret documents home.

Some states have amended their constitutions to grant people the right to a "healthful" or clean environment. Some now require regulators to apply much stricter standards for potentially polluting activities.

Kiribati's government has "suspended" all the judges of its appeals court, causing a constitutional crisis.

On a hunch, I pose the question of whether that government is negotiating with China.

Chileans wanted to replace Pinochet's constitution, but rejected the new one that was drafted. What next?