The bread lines in the Soviet Union were due to the need to hide the favoritism
Hide? I don’t think the fact that party apparatchiks didn’t stand in those lines was a secret to anyone.
the legacy of a system designed for a different environment, where water was not a binding constraint.
I think you’re factually mistaken. Water rights were always a big deal in the Western US precisely because water is the binding constraint in a lot of places. All the special water rights, the quotas, etc. reflect the system which always recognized that water was precious and in short supply.
Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday imposed mandatory water restrictions for the first time on residents, businesses and farms, ordering cities and towns in the drought-ravaged state to reduce usage by 25%. … The reduction in water use does not apply to the agriculture industry.
environmentalists … have forced the state to abandon critical water-storage reservoir projects to avoid disruption of wildlife and ecosystems. But that’s not all they’ve done. They also divert 4.4 million acre-feet of water every year — enough to supply the same number of families — to restore water runs such as the San Joaquin River, allowing passage of salmon and other fish. Without paying a dime, environmentalists have taken control of nearly half of California’s water.
If I am a farmer, can I buy water on the open market?
And the system is stupid, too. As far as I know some farmer water quotas are “use it or lose it”—if you don’t draw the water allocated to you this year, your quote will get reduced next year. Any guesses as to the consequences?
Hide? I don’t think the fact that party apparatchiks didn’t stand in those lines was a secret to anyone.
I think you’re factually mistaken. Water rights were always a big deal in the Western US precisely because water is the binding constraint in a lot of places. All the special water rights, the quotas, etc. reflect the system which always recognized that water was precious and in short supply.
No? source:
and more:
If I am a farmer, can I buy water on the open market?
And the system is stupid, too. As far as I know some farmer water quotas are “use it or lose it”—if you don’t draw the water allocated to you this year, your quote will get reduced next year. Any guesses as to the consequences?
The wealth of party members was obvious, yet still it was important not to explicitly mention it.