Water Mess We're In

California Republicans in their gated communities are not happy about Gov. Jerry Brown's new water restrictions.  Residents of super-rich places like Rancho Sante Fe are finding out that yes, these bourgeois limitations actually do apply to people like them, and they're pretty pissed off.

Drought or no drought, Steve Yuhas resents the idea that it is somehow shameful to be a water hog. If you can pay for it, he argues, you should get your water.

People “should not be forced to live on property with brown lawns, golf on brown courses or apologize for wanting their gardens to be beautiful,” Yuhas fumed recently on social media. “We pay significant property taxes based on where we live,” he added in an interview. “And, no, we’re not all equal when it comes to water.”

Yuhas lives in the ultra-wealthy enclave of Rancho Santa Fe, a bucolic Southern California hamlet of ranches, gated communities and country clubs that guzzles five times more water per capita than the statewide average. In April, after Gov. Jerry Brown (D) called for a 25 percent reduction in water use, consumption in Rancho Santa Fe went up by 9 percent.

But a moment of truth is at hand for Yuhas and his neighbors, and all of California will be watching: On July 1, for the first time in its 92-year history, Rancho Santa Fe will be subject to water rationing.

Oh, how awful that must be when you find out money can't buy you everything.

“It’s no longer a ‘You can only water on these days’ ” situation, said Jessica Parks, spokeswoman for the Santa Fe Irrigation District, which provides water service to Rancho Santa Fe and other parts of San Diego County. “It’s now more of a ‘This is the amount of water you get within this billing period. And if you go over that, there will be high penalties.’ ”

So far, the community’s 3,100 residents have not felt the wrath of the water police. Authorities have issued only three citations for violations of a first round of rather mild water restrictions announced last fall. In a place where the median income is $189,000, where PGA legend Phil Mickelson once requested a separate water meter for his chipping greens, where financier Ralph Whitworth last month paid the Rolling Stones $2 million to play at a local bar, the fine, at $100, was less than intimidating.

All that is about to change, however. Under the new rules, each household will be assigned an essential allotment for basic indoor needs. Any additional usage — sprinklers, fountains, swimming pools — must be slashed by nearly half for the district to meet state-mandated targets.

Residents who exceed their allotment could see their already sky-high water bills triple. And for ultra-wealthy customers undeterred by financial penalties, the district reserves the right to install flow restrictors — quarter-size disks that make it difficult to, say, shower and do a load of laundry at the same time.

In extreme cases, the district could shut off the tap altogether.

Can't wait to see that happen.  California means business and it's going to be rough sailing for the yacht crowd as a result. David Atkins weighs in:

Nothing better shows the infantility of the Republican mindset. These people believe that they’re all kings of their own little islands, that they have a right to use whatever they can get their hands on however they want. They have no concept of community or natural limits. For them, owning a Suburban is just as valid a choice as owning a Prius, climate change is a hoax that shouldn’t affect their choices, and anyone telling them they might have to cut back on something is a busybody interfering in their lives and waging a do-gooder war on their lifestyle. Their wealth doesn’t come at the expense of others because capitalism allows for endless growth and opportunity for those with enough gumption to pull themselves up by their bootstraps. And if they’re rich, the sense of the entitlement is exponentially greater.

They’re basically overgrown toddlers who don’t want to share and don’t understand how the world really works. And then they cry and feel abused when confronted by reality.

Absolutely true, this.