If you see Kris Kristofferson around, please tell him thanks for writing the line “freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose” in his song “Me and Bobby McGee.” That thought is sage and very appropriate for America in the year 2013.

In California, Gov. Jerry Brown has signed into law an astounding 876 new mandates. They all took effect last week. Now, in the Golden State, you cannot do the following:

• Hunt a bear using trained dogs. Untrained canines are OK, I guess. And how would the authorities be able to tell? Would the dog have to take a test in the forest?