Last night’s “Law and Order” was actually a pretty well-written and relatively fair allegory about the preemption doctrine. A prison guard kills a released maniac he knows will murder and rape his wife and kids eventually. He choose not to merely go to the authorities to violate his parole but take care of the job himself because he can’t take the risk. Obviously the producers leaned a bit heavily against preemption — which under American criminal justice is merely vigilantism — but it was done with nuance and smarts. I do wonder if the writers appreciate that on the international stage international law is not the same thing as domestic law. But, since I’ve grown to despise much of the writing on Law and Order in recent years, I tip my hat to them.