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Comment by jvanderbot | Hacker News Reader

Fun story. When driving through the agricultural valley between SF and LA, you used to see giant billboards on endless oarchards saying "Stop the DEMOCRAT drought" or "Stop the POLITICIAN CAUSED drought" both with the slogan "Is growing FOOD a WASTE of WATER?" Like, did people buy that?

It's not a waste, but it's also not your food, it's sold for profit. Farms in CA literally ship water out of the state in calorie form for profit. I'm glad they do, living in MN, but I hope they can sustain it.

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You still do. I live there and the signs are everywhere, and in completely bad faith. The corps putting the signs up (those are all corp farms) know exactly what they are doing.

I’m not glad California is exporting alfalfa or almonds. They’re just wasting water on crops that should be grown elsewhere.

Many other things should be grown in California, but you know, be smart about it.

Or we could build more reservoirs and not even worry about water usage at a fraction of the cost.

Not your cusecs, not your calories (or does carbs work better?)

That profit pays for your infrastructure in CA. All of the trucking road taxes paves your roads, builds bridges, etc...

No it doesn't, agriculture makes up less than 3% of California's economy and is heavily subsidized (read - money is taken from other industries are given to farmers by the government). It's tech companies, tourism, and the entertainment industry that pay for most of the infrastructure in California.

3% of what? GDP Dollars or Employees' wages? It's certainly not 3% of the food production since Califonria produces 1/3 of the entire nations vegetables and 3/4 of the nations fruit and nuts. And yet therein lies the problem... To many Fruit and Nuts in California.

The best thing for this country would be if California axed their agricultural industry because it would both force and encourage Ag development elsewhere. It would simultaneously be the worst thing for Californians and the cost of food production. But why am I arguing with you? It ultimately, brings my food production closer to home and you and your neighbors bear the cost of higher food prices.

I'm sure it does bring money, that's kind of the point of profit and taxes, but I think they are saying the drought is caused by government as a way to (I suppose) innoculate the locals and workers against water related regulations which would reduce their profits.

Or maybe they believe it, who knows.

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