2016 is the United Nations’ Year of Pulses. It holds great importance for India, where pulses — the edible seeds of certain leguminous plants, including peas, beans and lentils — are a key, traditional source of nutrition. But many of these staple foods are going beyond the reach of many Indians due to rising prices fueled by declining domestic production and record imports.

At first glance, the idea is appealing: Scrap Gov. Jerry Brown’s troubled bullet train project and pour the money into water development.

There is a Japanese proverb that goes, “Faith makes even the head of a sardine the object of worship.” That’s the sort of devotion that seems to be driving many Americans to buy overpriced organic products such as food, bed linens, pillows and clothes, sales of which increased 83% between 2007 and 2012.

Hoover Institution fellow Victor Davis Hanson discusses the drought and what California should do to save, store, and manage its water resources.