An odd collection of stories recently were connected by an important thread: the ongoing debate about the limits, if any, of private property rights.

Tulare County Assembly Member Bill Maze wants to ban dogs and other pest from the laps of drivers. He says it creates a grave danger. (This is the same Bill Maze who voted against "nanny-government" on a bill to ban cell phone use while driving -- surely a much more dangerous distraction.

Another story has neighbors in Selma feuding over the appearance and appropriateness of carports. Some are sturdy, well-anchored structures; others are eyesores of plastic pipe and tattered tarps.

And some Fresnans are still boiling over city rules that garbage and recycling bins must be stored a out of sight except during the weekly window when they're out at the curb for pickup.

All of that led to a column today arguing that there are no absolute property rights -- the right of neighbors to be free of value-destroying blight sometimes comes first.