I shouldn't pay attention to the news...

...but I just can't help myself.

We live in a dangerous age. And I'm not referring only to international terrorism, nuclear proliferation and the destructive open-border machinations of el Presidente Jorge Bush.

If you need an indication of how much undeserved power we have given our politicians, here's a small example mentioned in today's Sacramento Bee:

[California state] Assemblyman Lloyd Levine, D-Van Nuys, is the sponsor of Assembly Bill 1634. It would prohibit any person from owning or possessing any unaltered cat or dog over the age of four months. A major exception is if the owner possesses an "intact permit."

Which cats and dogs qualify for such permits? Under AB 1634, cats and dogs could legally procreate if they were registered as a purebred with a pedigree from either the American Kennel Club, the United Kennel Club, the American Dog Breeders Association or the International Cat Association. This is a bone being thrown at the breeding industry, with the mongrel relegated to the black market.

If buffoons like Levine had their way, none of my cats -- or my sweet little dog -- would have been born. Neither would any of the animals, all "mutts," whose photos have appeared here.

And of course Levine, in his mindless push to reduce the animal population, ignores a simple fact: so-called "purebred" animals are often the least healthy; many suffer from chronic illnesses and weaknesses brought about by inbreeding.

Levine, like most of us, is probably a genetic "mutt" himself.

He is definitely one of those "I-know-best" jerks who feels his election to public office gives him unlimited permission to intrude into every aspect of life, whether he has any qualification to do so or not.

This is 21st Century America: a century in which government has made the transition from servant of the people to our master.

How much more will we let politicians get away with? Too much, I fear.