Deterring the homeless in Santa Barbara, and more

Deterring the homeless in Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara, Calif., is realigning its sidewalk benches to deter homeless people from accosting pedestrians. Benches in shopping districts currently face the storefronts. After the city rotates the benches 90 degrees, the homeless “will be sitting with their backs to half the people coming and going,” said city official Marck Aguilar. “It might not be financially beneficial for them.”

Will Utah adopt a state gun?

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Lawmakers in Utah have proposed making the semiautomatic Browning pistol the official “state gun.” Gun-control groups say that would be in poor taste, given the recent Tucson massacre. But sponsors say Utah native John Browning’s semiautomatic firearm “has defended American values and the traditions of this country for a hundred years.”