McClintock To Make Water
Our 4th district Representative to the House, Tom McClintock has been appointed to the House Recourses Committee, Water and Power subcommittee.
That might be dubious news, except that apparently Congressman McClintock has the ability to make water, and much, much more than the usual ability.
In a press release, McClintock is quoted by aides as saying: "There is now a great debate in Congress over whether government will merely ration shortages that it has created or whether it will return to its traditional goal of promoting abundance through the development of our nation’s vast water and hydroelectric resources. This debate is of critical importance to the quality of life and prosperity of our nation and I am looking forward to taking an active role in it."
This is wonderful news, though it will require the creation of hundreds of thousands of acre feet of water, and it isn’t clear how McClintock will do this.
It turns out that, no, there haven’t been total morons running things, there really is less water, and much less drinkable water now that the ground water of the Central Valley is poisonous. Water tables all over the West continue to fall. Dams, the "vast hydroelectric resources" McClintock speaks of, turn out to be very short term solutions. Not only do they destroy river systems, as has been clear in the Klamath River Basin, but they fill up with silt. So, no, there aren't "vast" resources of water, there are scarce, dwindling resources. Even if McClintock and his supporters steal all the water from the Sierra Valley, and even if they allow the Sacramento-San Jaquin delta to fill with silt and pollution, there still won’t be "vast" resources.
So, Congressman McClintock, should we wait under the clear blue sky, or watch the road for tanker trucks, or will you deliver this water yourself?
Read Tom's Actual Press Release (link)
Does the Prospect pick on McClintock?
We do, it's in our job description to do it, and his to take it.
Do we think he's a terrible man?
Not at all, he's about like most politicians and better than some.
So why do we pick on him?
First, he's our representative and we can and should, and second because he's just so funny! All politicians talk BS but Tom has a gift for standing flat footed and saying things that are completely unrelated to anything in the real world!
