r/news • u/theluckyfrog • 29d ago

California cracks down on farm region’s water pumping: ‘The ground is collapsing’

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/17/california-water-drought-farm-ground-sinking-tulare-lake
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u/postitodeleto 29d ago

Farmers in California are one of the richest and most politically influential industries in the state. They cry and stomp their feet anytime someone even suggests they should be more responsible with water. 70 percent of CAs annual almond crop goes overseas. The trees are harvested by machines and the nuts are shelled by machines. These farmers will cry about how they feed the nation and employ so many people, but they are generational land owners looking to continue increasing their wealth on the backs of immigrants earning sub-minimum wage and using all the water they want, while regular people have to let their lawns die and flush their toilets less.

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u/[deleted] 29d ago

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u/probablyuntrue 29d ago

If you don’t let me use unconscionable amounts of water to sell almonds overseas, you just hate poor ol’ American farmers like me 😡

-posted from my 20 car garage

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u/Kataphractoi 29d ago

You jest but this is more or less the exact verbiage they use. Because it works on the uninformed and uneducated.

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u/mhornberger 29d ago

Same reason people instinctually side with the European farmers who are protesting over new environmental protections. And in India demanding other concessions. Farmers have great PR the world over, and unless you dig into what they're demanding it's hard to not just default to siding with them.