Today: A Plastic Purge, or the Last Straw?

May 29, 2018 5 AM PT

It’s no longer just plastic bags. California’s battle against plastic pollution is now targeting straws, bottle caps and polyester microfibers, but not everyone thinks that’s the right approach.

TOP STORIES

A Plastic Purge, or the Last Straw?

One word: Plastics. To some, they once represented a bright future. Today they are at the center of a fight about the environment, with California taking the lead. After banning single-use plastic bags, state lawmakers are turning their attention to drinking straws, bottle caps and microfibers from clothes, which make their way into the ocean and water supply. But three bills expected to go to the Assembly floor this week have also drawn intense pushback from conservatives, including gubernatorial candidate Travis Allen, and a coalition of manufacturers and industry groups.

More Politics

-- President Trump paid a Memorial Day tribute at Arlington National Cemetery, saying he came to “honor the lives and deeds of America’s greatest heroes.” Trump’s somber tone contrasted with a self-promotional tweet in which he said fallen soldiers would be “very happy and proud at how well our country is doing today,” ending it with “Nice!”

-- The EPA wants to put dirtier trucks on the road. To justify it, the agency has ignored its own findings and cited a study bankrolled by a Tennessee business.

-- Ivanka Trump’s brand continues to win foreign trademarks in China and the Philippines, adding to questions about conflicts of interest.

Efforts Down the Drain?

In December, L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti presided over the opening of trailers with toilets and showers on skid row. It was hailed as a possible turning point for those living in squalor. But in March, the bathrooms closed for an expansion and haven’t reopened since. Some advocates for the homeless say the situation points to a bigger problem: Logistical snafus and red tape, they say, are only adding to L.A.’s homelessness crisis.

Se Habla Español

Language is one of the oldest hot-button issues around. In the United States, speakers of German, French and Chinese, to name just three, have drawn the suspicions and ire of those who think English only should be spoken. These days, amid Trump’s anti-immigration rhetoric, incidents of people being berated for speaking Spanish have gone viral on social media — reconfirming español’s status as perhaps the most polarizing language in the U.S. today.

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OUR MUST-READS FROM THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND

-- An unprecedented amount of money from wealthy donors, unions and corporations is flowing into the California governor’s race. A Times analysis found independent groups, unrestricted by contribution limits, have already spent more than $26 million.

-- A guaranteed basic income? Stipends of up to $1,000 a month for those deemed most likely to shoot somebody? Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs told columnist Steve Lopez about some of his bold ideas.

-- Why did it take so long to arrest the Golden State Killer suspect? Interagency rivalries, old technology, errors and bad luck.

-- Culver City-based MedMen is looking to become the nation’s most valuable public cannabis company.

-- L.A. has Koreatown, Little Tokyo and Historic Filipinotown. So why can’t Leimert Park be Africa Town? Or Wakanda?

-- Any day now, Angels manager Mike Scioscia will surpass his Dodgers mentor, Tommy Lasorda, in victories.

MUST-WATCH VIDEO

-- The only gun store in all of Mexico is located behind a fortress-like wall on a heavily guarded military base in Mexico City. Yet gun violence is soaring.

-- These fifth-graders started out shy, but as this dance contest showed, they really know how to shimmy.

CALIFORNIA

-- Federal agents have seized an ancient mosaic from a home in Palmdale that they say was looted from war-torn Syria, but the man charged maintains that he’s no black-market arts dealer.

-- Police say they have arrested a flight school instructor and his assistant after they allegedly kidnapped a student pilot in Redding and told him he was going to be “shipped back” to China.

-- The oceanfront estate in San Clemente once owned by Richard M. Nixon and known as the Western White House is back up for sale at $63.5 million, marked down from $75 million three years ago.

-- Columnist Robin Abcarian describes the thrill of finding novelist John Steinbeck’s magical lily on a botany outing along the Central Coast.

HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS

-- Bummer blockbuster: “Solo: A Star Wars Story” took the No. 1 spot at the box office over the holiday weekend with an estimated $103 million, falling well short of the $140 million to $150 million initially expected.

-- “13 Reasons Why,” Netflix’s series about the aftermath of a teen suicide, is returning for its second season. This time, it also deals with themes of sexual assault.

-- The Hollywood Bowl restaging of Disney’s animated “Beauty and the Beast” highlighted the enduring power of the film’s music.

-- Bill Gold, who designed more than 2,000 posters for movies such as “Casablanca,” “My Fair Lady,” “Dirty Harry” and “The Exorcist,” has died at age 97.

CLASSIC HOLLYWOOD

“I was in debt and had holes in my shoes. When a friend bought me a steak, I’d forgotten whether to cut it with a knife or drink it from a glass.” Life wasn’t always easy for Bob Hope, who was born on this date in 1903. But by the time he died, Hope had entertained audiences the world over, become a confidant to presidents, made a fortune, given much to charity and amassed 100 years of memories.

NATION-WORLD

-- Alberto, the first named storm of the 2018 Atlantic hurricane season, hit the Florida Panhandle. The subtropical storm was downgraded to a depression, but forecasters still warned of heavy rains and floods.

-- Ellicott City, Md., was devastated by flash flooding from a massive rainstorm Sunday, just two years after a similar event forced the historic city to rebuild much of its Main Street.

-- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is facing pushback for his pro-Syrian refugee stance ahead of an election in June.

-- In the battle between Russia and Ukraine, the dispute has religious roots too.

BUSINESS

-- The person who wins the four-way race to become California’s next insurance commissioner will have a job with broad authority over policies that cover homes, businesses and cars. Medical insurance, not so much.

-- L.A.-based Attn: has made a name for itself producing online videos that usually explore social and political themes in under three minutes. Now it’s getting into hourlong TV specials with major networks.

SPORTS

-- Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors defeated the Houston Rockets and are on their way back to the NBA Finals, where they’ll meet LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers for the fourth straight time.

-- Can you believe it was 25 years ago today that Wayne Gretzky propelled the L.A. Kings into the Stanley Cup Final with an unforgettable game? Speaking of hockey history, the Vegas Golden Knights won their first Stanley Cup Final opener last night against the Washington Capitals.

OPINION

-- Paint companies poisoned people with lead additives. Now they want a billion-dollar bailout from taxpayers in California.

-- After pointlessly groping countless Americans, the Transportation Security Administration is keeping a secret watchlist of those who fight back.

WHAT OUR EDITORS ARE READING

-- Did the United States really lose track of 1,475 immigrant kids? In short, yes. But there’s also more to the story. (Washington Post)

-- “Progressive? That’s just another word for godless”: Franklin Graham, son of the late Rev. Billy Graham, is preaching faith-based politics in California before the primary election. (New York Times)

-- A Malian migrant who became known as the Spider-Man of Paris after scaling four stories to rescue a toddler has been named an honorary French citizen after meeting France’s president. (The Independent)

ONLY IN L.A.

When Miatta David Johnson and her sister, Massah David, came to the U.S. as children, it was after their father had been imprisoned in Liberia and their great-uncle, the president, was killed in a coup d’etat. Now they run a West Hollywood boutique creative marketing company that once built out an entire lot to look like heaven for a Kanye West party.

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