New Rule: America's Pipe Dream | Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO)

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Before we spread democracy around the world, America has to figure out how to spread water around America.
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[@deepakrama]

My dad is at 86 still a certified professional engineer from California. He actually was involved in the building of desalination plants in other countries. He said it can be easily done in California. Also now that we have solar power we can also pump it for free considering we have so much sun ☀️ to power the motors. Bill nailed this one.

[@momo777777777777777]

Nope. Solar power is inconsistent and Cali already has frequent outages cuz of that

[@M1kst3r1]

@@momo777777777777777 Gravity exists.

[@nyetzdyec3391]

@@M1kst3r1 Well, sure, gravity exists... Of course, since the subject is DESALINATION... that means the water would be coming from SEA LEVEL... which is BELOW where you want the water to go after being treated. In this case, gravity is NOT your "friend".

[@wirelesmike73]

@@momo777777777777777 There's also wind, wave, and geothermal to make up the difference and balance out the demand. We're out of excuses not to be using every available resource to get away from using focil fuels, other than greed.

[@blqest125]

@@nyetzdyec3391 , californians/democrats/liberals love to brag about cali's big economy but they cant even figure out to make a couple of desalination water plants which they can easily afford and end the water shortage and stop the forest fires. they mismanage the riches they make by spending it on window dressing neoliberal policies.

[@miguelangelvizuetmata555]

There is one thing someone said to me in Almeria, Spain, that stuck to me: “Yes, desalinated water is expensive, but not having water is much more expensive”

[@alexs.1242]

Sounds like something somebody would say in Spain. In Europe they have schools, schools that teach foreign languages, life skills, critical thinking and - eeek! - climate.

[@rdelrosso2001]

I agree that water is good to have! But when you take the SALT out of water, what do you do with the SALT? I am not say don't do Desalination, but do it responsibly.

[@miguelangelvizuetmata555]

@@rdelrosso2001 From what they explained to me, they return the brine to the sea via a pipeline and discharge it a few hundred meters off the coast, near the seafloor and away from reefs, seagrass patches and sensitive areas.

[@superhavi]

@@rdelrosso2001 They put on the sunday roast.

[@MeanGeneSanDiego]

@@rdelrosso2001 🙄

[@benjamingiddings9254]

And this is why I love Bill Maher. He makes me think, and sometimes gives me a completely new thought or new perspective. Great idea, Bill. No one is talking about it.

[@terryhill4732]

Desalination of salt water is hardly a new idea it's been around for several years just not used in this country much

[@paulbrinkman5631]

@@terryhill4732 Would have to be done by the government - state or federal. Seems like an increasingly popular subject in the west, these days.

[@terryhill4732]

@@paulbrinkman5631 I'm surprised the way California loves to waste money they hadn't tried it years ago

[@aneesf1445]

I'm glad that there's a human like Bill Maher, we need more of this kind of people. He says it right And I love it that he says it right in our faces. Big respect. 👏🏻

[@burkemick8]

If you liked the oil wars, you’re really going love the water wars.

[@c0r3s4v3]

Don't even consider stopping fruitfully multiplying though. We wouldn't want to lack cannon fodder for the coming spectacle.

[@peg202xo7]

@@c0r3s4v3 Looks like Texas will do her fair share!

[@c0r3s4v3]

@@peg202xo7 Drop in the proverbial bucket; though I hear young-en are delivered packing their own heat and crucifix in Texas.

[@burkemick8]

Or people fodder. Soylent Green.

[@RussianJackal]

Unlike our decades-long current occupations, they will be quick, brutal, and with huge casualties. See, humans don’t drop dead in three to five days if they don’t drink oil.

[@AaronOnTheTrails]

I saw an interview once with a ranger at Mesa Verde National Park. He said "I'm always asked why they would build a city like this in the middle of a desert. I always say a thousand years from now people will discover the ruins of Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Las Vegas and ask the same thing."

[@peterhausmann8337]

@@GarretGrayCamera And that is why it's called desert, because it never rains. They even claim it for California. If the Colorado River will lose 50% of its amount of water a lot of people will leave the region. Bill has to calculate the amount of money he has to spend to supply San Bernardino (1000ft) with desalted seawater.

[@CycleGirl-77]

"Many were increasingly of the opinion that they'd all made a big mistake in coming down from the trees in the first place. " -Douglas Adams, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

[@R.E.E.D.]

@@GarretGrayCamera No. What might eventually ruin cities in the east is floods, tornadoes and hurricanes... but in all 3 of those cases, there's still water. No water = no life. The second anything happens that causes an extended shortage of water in the west, western cities die or become even bigger sh!tholes.

[@gplito]

@@peterhausmann8337 Bill is merely stating that absolutely nothing can be or will ever be done do solve these issues due to exactly the problems he listed. So forget pipelines and desalination plants. My advice? Move back east. But please, wait 25 years until I'm not on the planet anymore. Or am too old to fucking care.

[@at1970]

It will be aliens from a planet that realized that over population and environmental destruction wasn’t the pathway to happiness and longterm survival.

[@nm9586]

I have been advocating for this for years. Unfortunately, my audience is just my friends, family, and co workers. Bill Mahr has a much bigger audience by orders of magnitude. Thanks Bill. This discussion is much needed.

[@Iguazu65]

Superb monologue. He nailed the context perfectly. Especially the boondoggle aspect.

[@petermullen8920]

In Victoria, Australia we have had a desalination plant for years. Took two years to build and it hasn't stopped raining since. My plan for Californians, is to advertise heavily that your going to build the biggest plant ever, then build a gigantic Walmart and label it a desalination plant, thus fooling the weather, and you will have more water than you know what to do with.

[@petermello55]

Can always count on the Aussies for out of the box brilliance. High fucking five brother

[@sciencecompliance235]

Smort!

[@FreeminderXIII]

Desalination is bad for the ecosystem though

[@maxhydekyle2425]

I guess God, the Giant Spaghetti Monster, Cthulhu, or whatever the hell controls us has a sense of humor.

[@TroublesomeOwl]

@@FreeminderXIII So is drought.

[@erichaynes7502]

We're American's we fight amongst ourselves over EVERYTHING..and the big business interests love it!!

[@rickrozen2341]

Okay commie

[@ryanmacdonnell8987]

@@rickrozen2341 well done you just proved his point😂🤣

[@Cinoism]

@@rickrozen2341 one can't both communist and wise.

[@janelliot5643]

@@Cinoism fascists are nitwits

[@justgivemethetruth]

They not only love it ... they pay and conspire together to bring it about. Bill asked where that 3.5 trillion for war goes ... it goes to keeping the military junta in this country hidden and in doing whatever needs to be done to push the people down, bad education, bad food, bad healthcare, bad information, and make it seem like they all hate each other and have nothing in common.

[@adamhfilms]

Based on my experience the US lately has a really hard time focusing on long-term projects. As an Immigrant from Europe to the USA, I never really understood why certain politicians in the US equate investments in infrastructure with tyranny and socialism. In order for capitalism and trade to function, you need bridges to not fall, you need innovative solutions to serious ecological problems in order for people to continue to exist and participate in the economy. What the US calls capitalism is in fact corporate welfare, or in other words corruption. Don't equate capitalism with corruption. And also don't preach socialism and communism as a solution because my parents lived through it and I absolutely 100% guarantee you that it also leads to corruption.

[@prodigiii712]

Because certain other politicians use the word infrastructure to make their friends rich: the recent “infrastructure bill” only had 9 percent of the total money going to actual physical infrastructure. Certain politicians are scepter of if government abuse and certain other politicians are straight up corrupt. 750000 to build a homeless unit in Cali meanwhile in Austin,Texas they just moved the entire homeless population to cheap motels until they can find jobs.

[@feralbluee]

well said :) in amurica long term planning is “what? huh?!” no abortion!!! >:/ baby born into poverty or drug addicted is suffering. “catch ya later. i gotta get to this dinner thing.” not our problem. we didn’t get pregnant!!!!

[@treywalker9103]

Well unfortunately Americans take pride in ignorance. Tribalism is the law of the land & all that takes is blind loyalty. The less educated you are the better. Most Americans have no idea what socialism, capitalism, communism etc or even kno what a liberal or conservative is but will claim to be one or the other. The only tribe in this country that prospers is greed while everyone else points fingers & fights over crumbs

[@feralbluee]

@@treywalker9103 hi trey - it’s not a great time in the world right now, and amurica is among the worst. let’s hope there will be backlashes against these horrible people!! so many politicians are not doing what we, the majority want. . . really, i don’t know what they’re doing - getting millions from the NRA and not giving two blanks about anyone else. Mitch McWhatever is a horrible, horrid human. well, let’s just carry on and you keep safe, sweetie :) 🌷🌱

[@janebraun4482]

We probably need more Dutch here. They know how to work with the environment, hey they expanded their whole country taking from the sea!!

[@jamesm654]

Thank you! I've been saying this for years

[@latriciacagle4873]

I live in the Southwest desert and we need to stop wasting water on inefficient/archaic agricultural practices, make the heavy users pay more (tiered rate structures), stop letting companies like Nestle steal our water, put a hefty surcharge on bottled water. If you want to live in the desert, stop behaving like you live in a tropical paradise. These a just a few ideas and some have a dual purpose of benefitting the environment.

[@sUASNews]

Exactly right. Pipelines are not the solution

[@QuokkaSquad]

Thank you, I've been waiting for someone in the comments to address the perverted practices in conventional large-scale agriculture. That was never going to be sustainable. It wastes water, destroys the soil and produces less and less nutritious food. Ironically, much more ancient cultures knew better how to farm sustainably: In biodiverse ecosystems with many layers of various plants providing shade, protecting the ground from erosion, and entering mutually beneficial microbial relationships. Old leaves + branches left to cover the ground, to serve as food for microorganisms and as homes for insects, and to slowly build up another layer of nutritious soil. With a multitude of animal species serving as pest control and fertilizing the soil. Animals grazing and/or controlled burning to prevent wildfires. All that ancient wisdom was suppressed by colonialism in favor of supposedly "more efficient" (read: more exploitative) practices, and look at where it got us.

[@SpacemanXC]

@@sUASNews It isn't raining and snowing where it should be raining and snowing. There's no reason why we can't engineer our way through global warming. Using the water isn't a problem if there's plenty of supply that can be moved around. The water pipe would only have to make it to the Colorado river. Then gravity, and our existing aqueduct network, can take care of the rest.

[@Chrisicola]

Yep, and other countries that roll in, buy farm land/ US water rights, and ship product back home.

[@mayainverse9429]

@@sUASNews i agree with that. but desalination plants are a good idea. but better agri water practices is good. israel doesn't just get ocean water their farms are significantly more water efficient. your idea bout bottled water is fucking stupid. that issue has nothing at all to do with water but waste plastics. out of all the things you can do with water mobile drinking water units is probably the absolute best use of water.

[@thjbird]

“We can have democracy in this country, or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of a few, but we can't have both.” Louis D. Brandeis

[@kitcoffey7194]

Guns or butter. War or human needs.

[@DiLacquaFace]

You can keep your democracy, I've seen mob rule in action. No thanks

[@lucycan6363]

@@kitcoffey7194 well you already know the answer to that question. They love guns more than food and they will go to war in a heartbeat if it means the rich will make some money from it.

[@TexanIndependence]

@@DiLacquaFace YES! Exactly! "It is regarded as democratic that [politicians] should be assigned by lot, as oligarchic that they should be elective" - Aristotle The Greeks actually called electing your leaders "Oligarchy"/Aristocracy not Democracy. The US founders wanted elections because as the wealthiest landowners and merchants in America, they were a form of Aristocracy and elections ensured that only they would hold power rather than choosing by lot. The word Democracy referred to a system where leaders were chosen by lottery (by lot) from among the "Demos" (the people), it's called Sortition now and we use it for jury duty. You wouldn't let people "run for election" to serve on your jury. They'd campaign on hanging you without knowing the facts and win office for it. While choosing jurors by LOTTERY tends to produce the best results of any system we've tried. The reason elections are Aristocracy is because only the rich or famous (the definition of Aristocracy) have the time and name recognition in order to win office. It is extremely rare for a poor person to win office even at the local level. Elections also reward skillful liars (if you can fool the people you get their votes). Whereas choosing representatives by lottery would actually mean the average person who isn't power hungry can win office. Or the brilliant genius who lacks charisma. I personally think representatives should be chosen by lottery with some qualifications (i.e. the senate could be chosen by lottery from among veterans only, as that would make a great recruitment reason and help reduce the cost of the military as people won't need as much monetary incentive). On the other hand, we really don't need a legislature at all. Judeo-Christians were told by God that the best system is Kritarchy (Rule by Judges, they had God as the executive branch, Bible as the laws so no need for a legislature). But even if you're atheist that model could be appealing, you just set down what all the laws should be, and judges administer the law. There aren't many examples except in medieval times like Iceland and the Judicates of Sardinia, or the Druidic Kritarchy of Ireland which ruled for a 1,000 years there. There is one African country that relied on Rule-by-Judges to end a civil war and brought peace for over a decade until the USA funded terrorist warlords to topple them (literally the USA funded what was called the "Warlord Alliance") which restarted the civil wars and piracy that Somalia's struggled with ever since and Somalia re-instated Sharia anyways so nothing good came out of their "democracy"/republic. The only stable Republics in history were slaveowning Republics (Rome, 18th-century America), or Banker-Run Republics (Medici's Florentine Republic, Venetian Republic, Federal-Reserve which controls America's economy today, etc.). "Permit me to issue and control the money of a nation, and I care not who makes its laws!" - Rothschild

[@mouwersor]

Or the government needs to have less power so corruption doesn't do anything

[@CYR888]

I've been watching you for almost 2 decades. You get funnier and more real everyday!

[@janncoons7445]

Oh my God the news weather man outfit was so right on!! I can't stop laughing

[@sparkymcplug3765]

As soon as there's a huge profit margin for the Military Industrial Complex to supply water, the shortage will end.

[@Anotherway04]

With galactic payoffs to the interminably crooked and corrupt politicians well in tow.

[@phiksit]

The private sector stole and monetized water a long time ago... Nestle, the prime culprit.

[@katem.8816]

@@Anotherway04 it’s the dark money behind politicians and that could be said of the SC, too.

[@TroublesomeOwl]

@@phiksit In australia its the cotton farmers that stole the water off our country and sold a portion of it back at a profit. Half the country is suffering to prop up an ecological disaster of an industry and a few mega-millionairs

[@Dayonetheone]

We have to figure out a way to start a war.

[@blahlbinoa]

You're talking to the wrong people, Nestle has all the water, you gotta talk to them

[@heidih3176]

Shhhh these people are probably receiving money from Nestle.

[@kellibarnhouse6591]

Nestle steals fresh water from our National Parks! Stop them from doing that! Great Idea Bill! A piepline from The Mississippi River, which is a mile wide or greater around the St Louis or Memphis part of the river would take flooding down some; The Missouri River or even Lake Superior! From All 3 would work even better! Irrigation and retention ponds a long the pipeline would benefit our Farms and ranches! F REPUBLICAN LIES and Greed! Trillions of Dollars on a Military that Protects the World, but not the United States! Give our Military the Job of Building this Pipeline or fighting our Wildfires, we spend 800 million dollars on them sitting on their Azzs in Spain, Portugal, Ect...! 880 military bases around the World!

[@EndeavorsDnB]

Don’t forget the almond farmers.

[@krokodyl1927]

@@kellibarnhouse6591 👌👍

[@aebalc]

@@kellibarnhouse6591 "F REPUBLICAN LIES and Greed!" You miss the point. This is not a Republican/Democrat issue! The point is that the costs that crony capitalism, bureaucracy and special interests have added to public projects has doomed them (the projects) to failure and massive cost over runs from the start. Two of the examples he gives ($750,000 for each unit of homeless housing and the high speed rail debacle) are from California where the democrats have a super majority in state offices - the republicans don't have enough votes to even obstruct. In those examples, Republicans have nothing to do with it (not that republicans don't get their share of graft in other places).

[@claytonmunsey9740]

Spot on Bill, you are in focus, stay on point.

[@Vegaswill714]

I was involved with Electric Power Line projects for years in the Desert southwest. Permits, environmental studies, land rights would take 10 - 15 years for a project that took 18 months to physically build. When there is a long, linear facility like a pipeline it is impossible not to cross land somewhere along the way that will draw thousands of outraged protesters and politicians who campaign on a promise to shut your project down. We have, as a nation gone from burying carcinogenic waste near water supplies (remember Love Canal) to "BANANA" - Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anything". We somehow, IMO find middle ground and move forward. Well done Bill Maher!

[@RC-lc8xl]

I don't think you would see that many protesters, since water is a lot cleaner than oil.

[@Vegaswill714]

@@RC-lc8xl You would be amazed RC78. Even when permitting projects that are universally accepted as environmentally good, people come out of the woodwork and oppose it. It takes political leaders who stand behind the project and give it support. Often you have to go through the process which can take years.

[@JordanbM83]

When Government LEARNS Water is more valuable then oil, you will see the Flood Gates open with Water Lobbyists to get this done!!!!!

[@tylerjames7015]

“Than”

[@apoc5000]

Billionaires will find a way to own water

[@noirrain6005]

They know. That’s why they are trying to grab Amazon from Brazil since 500 years ago. Brazil ain’t gonna take that without fighting back. If the US couldn’t take on some Vietnamese in a tiny jungle, imagine the whole Europe which is the size of Amazon plus their army is occupying the forest and their war cry is “Jungle!” My point here is: they won’t build water pipelines because they think they can just go there and grab.

[@jdhill4]

@@apoc5000 When water is more valuable than oil your water bill will require a 7 figure income to pay.

[@Buzzramjet]

AND they will do the same thing the High Speed rail people did. Run a 30 billion project into an almost one trillion dollar project and got ABSOLUTLY NOT ONE FUCKING THING DONE. We would run into the same thing wit Desalination plants unless the laws are changed and strictly enforced. NO cost overruns allowed. You bid that is what you finish it with and if you walk away from your contract whining no money then you get prison with a minimum of twenty years. That is what they do in China. You bid you better build it for that price.

[@Buzzramjet]

One more thing while i rant. President Eisenhower was right on target about the military industrial complex. We waste enough money on wars of choice to build a hundred Desalination plants AND water pipelines from the East AND put millions of Americans to work at the same time. irag and Afghanistan cost enough to have done all that AND have research stations on the Moon and Mars with a REAL space station up there. YES we need to explore outward.

[@Buzzramjet]

@Matt1147 YEP AND It can be done. The infrastructure bill would rebuild our highways, bridges, new rail systems and water infrastructure ala Desalination plants and pipelines to redistribute water to the West. Asshles will say "well you knew there was ho water in the West." So fucking what. we move water there. AS well stop tearing up lawns, and more greenery as it helps the environment.

[@rudyburnias3915]

@Matt1147 we were energy independent with trump, dummy.

[@gerarduspoppel2831]

@@user-hf2dr7sh4y .here in the Netherlands we have a bit of the same. no one can buy a house anymore. but we have a new jet fighter

[@johnkeller5163]

California is too mismanaged to even try to solve water problems. More money alone does not solve.the problem. We have spent as a nation far more trillions of dollars on Great Society LBJ expanded welfare and it certainly has made policies which have damaged the poor overall. In this case, solutions of water also must be combined with engineering solutions improving power generation efficiency. Current California policies have not even started to solve the problems that they created.

[@theborg2638]

@@rudyburnias3915 Buahahahahaha, that was a good one, love your sense of humor.

[@procivitas6923]

#BillMaher's #RealTime ..Both hilarious and informative ..plus good policy recommendations.✌️

[@peacebe2u480]

Wow, this is an eye opening segment. Never thought of it b4. Great.

[@acm4147]

We also need to "spread" democracy here.

[@ShifuCareaga]

Stop voting for fascist Nationalist Socialists like Biden and Pelosi. And you can have your Republic back. Also stopping voting for the Democrat Party has the advantage of not voting for systemic racism. Vote 3rd party.

[@gazpachopolice7211]

@@ShifuCareaga why stop voting for Fascists when you can just try to mount a coup. That wear that "neutral", "third party" mask a little more securely , Trumpet.

[@ShifuCareaga]

@@gazpachopolice7211 the only coup that happen3d was in 5 states where Democrats paid to rig elections and you can see spikes in those states in google trends regarding election fraud how and jailtime for election fraud in OCTOBER. I persobally did vote for Trump in 2020 because he did a better job than expected. Previously I voted Jill Stein and she turned out to be an imbecile but 2016 was a confusing shitshow. I am still mad at Trump for letting our country be taken over by fraud and China. So I am not sure I would vote for him again. He should never have let this all happen. The entire COVID tyranny falls on his lap. He trusted that lying Fauci SOB.

[@jaydisqus3353]

He lost, get over it.

[@thewolfdoctor761]

@@ShifuCareaga Fascism has always been a far right ideology. Nice try.

[@thearmchairjournalist566]

We got the same problems here, even pristine Tasmania has 40% of the rivers in neglected conditions! Agriculture sucking the water dry & letting pesticides flow back into the water contaminating it for anyone down stream! 😡 it’s a world wide problem that every country has to deal with.

[@move2003ny]

I would love to see Americans trying to find Tasmania on a map.

[@lorrie2878]

@@move2003ny I remember where it is, vaguely. I got my son and grandson didgeridoos. Played in tasmania as well as Australia.

[@saiadithya1279]

@@move2003ny I thought tasmania was i Africa.🤣😜

[@rolfheubel2814]

It's agriculture problem? No. It's climate change, global warming, problem. Temperatures are rising everywhere. This means less snow i pack in mountainous areas, earlier melting and more evaporation. It also meand more wildfires.in arid hot climes.

[@SpacemanXC]

@@rolfheubel2814 I love how people always want to attack the farmers. If it wasn't for farmers we would have nothing. Civilization wouldn't even exist. Maybe when global warming starts an actual famine in the west, people will understand. Imagine thinking that the way to deal with drought is by getting rid of our food supply.

[@aileenpierce2998]

I love how you hit everything right on the head. Greed kills.

[@blqest125]

and what group of people are known historically throughout the world for their greed/wealth hoarding??? let's see if you can answer this question honestly.

[@blqest125]

@Wukong robotics , some humans more so than otherwise to the point that its become a reputation.

[@aileenpierce2998]

@Wukong robotics Exactly the point I was getting at. Indifference. Lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern.

[@Vincent_Morrow]

America is phenomenally corrupt. It is un-fixably corrupt. It's almost as bad as Russia, Mexico, and India. We will be as bad as them in a few decades.

[@blqest125]

@@Vincent_Morrow as them? i dont remember mexico or india invading afghanistan or flying planes into their own buildings blame a country that had nothing to do with it so they can invade them. do you know who rules america? its the same "type" of people that rule russia.

[@davidbryden7904]

Exactly right, Bill ! The history of water in Southern California has always been rife with corruption and backroom politics. Unfortunately, the powers that be seem to be waiting until the price of water is high enough to be "economically feasible " You thought your undrinkable tap was expensive now....

[@steveg9744]

Can’t remember when you have done a better editorial. Great job Bill!✅👍

[@dontsaygabe]

Really reminding me of George Carlin

[@NecaMeca1389]

That one about watering the almonds was also good!

[@ge2623]

Amurica: "Land of the free, home of where's my cut?"

[@randymillhouse791]

@@dgansz705 Wow, need to see your papers please.

[@ShovelShovel]

That's why we need less giverment

[@randymillhouse791]

@@ShovelShovel How about no Gov't at all?

[@randymillhouse791]

@@dgansz705 Catches your eye don't it?

[@seanwieland9763]

That’s government for you. Any form of central planning will result in this.

[@KCFlyer2]

As hard as it is to believe, there ARE times with the eastern US experiences drought. And if we are sending all that water to the west in order to water golf courses in the desert, Who will control the flow of water in that situation?

[@scottl9660]

It’s pretty disingenuous to show a picture of a flooding subway and say the east is drowning give us your water. No look at aquifer data in the east, no look at what water is used for in the west, and tied to the last point no look at how the west lost its rivers lakes and reservoirs. As long as you pack dozens of millions of people in a dessert, your going to have to manage your resources carefully. Historically that has not been a good look out west. Golf course, green lawns and the worlds almond supply all in a dessert is insanity leaving aside the absolute shenanigans of what was done to the Mexicans with regards to the Colorado river. If you wanted to get serious about water you’d have a pretty hard talk with farmers out there, and oh my god do we hear the whining all the way to the Atlantic when someone mentions water restrictions as if only washing your car twice a year, again in a dessert, was the biggest infringement on your civil liberties since Plessy vs. Ferguson. I’m left to wonder why the same folks who frittered away their own water resources so spectacularly while showing no regard to the people living down river from themselves nor putting in the hard work to manage what they have left in a rational way should be given the keys to the continents water supply.

[@Pretermit_Sound]

This is such a spot on critique of how our country collectively approaches these types of issues. We used to welcome, and totally embrace daunting, and even the seemingly impossible challenges when they presented themselves. Now more often than not, we only put our efforts towards crafting a convincing excuse as to why we CAN’T do something. Usually by blaming a political or business rival. Never ourselves. Hopefully there will come a day once again where Americans as a whole, will rise to the occasion. We’re steadily running out of sources for civic pride 😒✌🏻🇺🇸

[@Lon.BedStuyforLife]

One of the best "New Rule" segments. Thanks Bill! 💯👍🏽🥰

[@mieliav]

forgot to mention that spills from a water pipe are not going to poison stuff like the spills from gas/oil pipelines.

[@chrislee5207]

Salton Sea 2 Electric Boogaloo

[@KD-rs6xx]

In general, Bill has come around to my way of thinkin'.

[@lindaminarik7431]

Wow!! You are impressive saying things no one wants to hear...and you do it so well...thank you for the light at the end of the tunnel...eventhough you will never see this.

[@synocrat601]

I live on the Mississippi River in Iowa, being able to shunt off all the extra floodwaters during flood periods could certainly help prevent lot of damage down stream, running the water through a wetland to filter it first and then holding it in lakes to use later would greatly help agriculture as well.

[@christopherjannette9651]

How exactly do you "shunt it" over the Rocky Mountains?

[@synocrat601]

@@christopherjannette9651 You don't. You pull water from the Mississippi river West to the Rockies. You take desalinated water from the Pacific and push it East to the Rockies. Stop being the problem of why things never even get built in the first place by being a negative Nancy.

[@msponsler1]

Where are the lakes to hold the floodwaters? If they don't exist what land are you going to flood to build these Lakes? You could breach all your levees then lose thousands of acres of farmland which would be great for wildlife but Farmers would go bananas.

[@synocrat601]

@@msponsler1 We've been building reservoirs for thousands of years with much less sophisticated equipment. For using less acres you simply dig far deeper instead of making broad and shallow reservoirs. We can expand conservation credits to landowners for the increased wildlife area as well as the farmers getting a benefit of cheaper water supplies that are more reliable. We could also install a canal network to act as a large distributed reservoir of it's own.

[@swesleyc7]

Get everyone in this thread civil engineering degrees. Ye oh Lord we are saved.

[@plausiblequotes7643]

Thank you! Been saying for years why can’t they make a pipeline that draws water from heavy flood areas to drought stricken areas. Can do it for oil, but not water. Thanks Nestlé

[@folee_edge]

The L.A. area normally gets heavy rains during monsoon season - they have a giant pipeline structure...that dumps it out into the ocean. I'll think about taking this seriously when they stop their bad habits and change THEIR infrastructure

[@gapperx9068]

So us on the Eastern coasts should let CA pump out our reservoirs? Cuz pumping out when flooding happens won't be enough to fill the pipe 100% for one flow so where does all the other water come from?

[@gapperx9068]

@@folee_edge i did not know this. Very interesting, but why the hell would u even want to do that? Seems ass backwards. Scary thought tho, if things don't turn around here in USA, I could see in future where Dems, progressives, what have u mandate that the Eastern states pipe water to them even if the states didn't want to. All in the name of good for the country.

[@EddyGF800]

@@gapperx9068 Exactly- Flood waters recede pretty quickly, usually in a matter of days. Drought goes on for long periods of time.

[@gapperx9068]

@@EddyGF800 yep. Glad someone else sees this cuz it's main reason hasn't been done. I would imagine. Just wouldn't be enough volume to even cause a trickle to come out the other end in CA. Their best bet is desalination from Pacific. Tech giants should fund good % of it along with the state. Forget the trains they're taking bout. Water b4 trains, but hey, it's gov and they don't know shit about executive mgmt.

[@Carlos-ji4bd]

today is 2/17/24 and oh boy only if Bill had a crystal ball,...

[@phatdog45]

This is the content I want from you Bill

[@maziary]

I live in San Diego and we don't have any drinking water problems. In fact, no water shortages are expected in San Diego until 2045. We have a desalination plant. There is another one in development in Huntington Beach.

[@mypl510]

And we manage our water containment better than anyone else in California! We upgraded our Dams and now they are paying off!

[@magnum8264]

Congratulations!!!!!!!

[@musoangelo]

I live in San Diego and we do have a water shortage. Just because you have your head in the sand doesn't mean that there isn't a water shortage, It means you refuse to acknowledge reality.

[@killer408cid]

@@musoangelo You don't have a water shortage. You have a greedy, entitled people surplus.

[@musoangelo]

@@killer408cid Well you're probably not wrong. The current culture wars have one side dismissing anything that they don't want to believe. I'm hoping that there are more people who will actually take the time to learn the realities of what's going on and will prevail, but I'm really not sure what the ultimate outcome will be. I always knew that this group existed, I never dreamed it was between 35 and 40 percent of the electorate and with the gqp trying to legalize corruption, I'm really not sure.

[@10whiten99]

In the UK, when we have a “drought” it’s also ridiculous. We are an island surrounded by water, yet desalinisation is for some reason not an option. In the Western US, I can only imagine the frustration. If money is the issue, which I assume it is, I doubt it’s as much of an issue as having no water.

[@youngatnaruto]

By drought in the UK you mean dry land and deserts?

[@warrendourond7236]

Desalination is prohibitively energy intensive. If you have cheap green energy you could maybe do it for drinking water for a small population. But industry or Agriculture require far too much water to rely on desalination.

[@teudaan]

@10whiten99 money is not an issue, California alone has a bigger economy than UK; they also taxed that economy more than almost any other places, let alone other big metro areas like Las Vegas, Phoenix...The problem as Bill Maher stated, is politicians and kick backs. @Warren Dourond Desalination is NOT prohibitively energy intensive ! whoever told you that lie!!? Carlsbad Desalination Plant in San Diego, California, requires approximately 35 MW to run and provides 50 million gallons of water supply per day (Carlsbad Desalination Project 2017). While a The estimated average nuclear power plant daily output is calculated as 6,384 MW x 90% x 24 hours, which gives us approximately 138,000 MWh per day!!

[@LupinLovebites]

In addition to the nearly prohibitive energy cost, where will you put all the salts, heavy metals, trash, and etc that you take out? It's a huge issue. When done at a small scale, it's manageable. On a large scale, it creates environmental dead zones wherever you put it.

[@warrendourond7236]

@@LupinLovebites totally!

[@kennethmelnychuk9737]

OMG, I laughed and agreed with Bill on this episode. Either he’s starting to make sense or I’m experiencing that start of some mental challenges (?) 😆😀🤭

[@MrDigimik]

Can you imagine the price of a gallon of water in CA once they tax it!??! !

[@marciaperone1468]

You hit the nail right on the head, Bill. There's an old adage that says "if there's the will there's a way." If all the politicians got their heads together and quit the partisan bs we could solve most of this country's problems.

[@CaliMex57]

If all the politicians put their heads together you might get one bright idea! Lol!

[@brushstroke3733]

They are putting their heads together! That's how they run the phony partisan politics smoke screen to keep the people duped and squabbling over petty nonsense while they run out of the back carrying all the loot!

[@denisehughes6337]

The politicians don't represent the people..they just want you to think they do.

[@I_discovered_civilization]

Yes if only the democrats weren’t so divisive and partisan we can achieve anything.

[@joegalley2187]

@@brushstroke3733 the idea that California has “partisan politics” is almost as idiotic as saying that “democrats are good at running cities.” California is practically a uniparty state.

[@Willverinerage]

"and being china, was completed the next day" brilliant.

[@Huang59]

Although what he said was funny. The phase 2 of the Chinese water project is still ongoing. 20 years later! Also it took the Chinese 30 years in planning.

[@ernstthalmann4306]

Yeah that communism sure is evil, making bridges and buildings and aqueducts and highways in record time while also alleviating poverty for hundreds of millions of people But yeah "hurrrrr evil communism hurrrr"

[@OlJackBurton]

@@ernstthalmann4306 None of these projects would have been done (actually completed competently and efficiently) under mass murderer Mao. Can't get any worse or evil than 50 million dead. Well, i guess Kublai did that too to China. It took "capitalism with Chinese characteristics" for any real modernization to happen and getting out of the dookiehole of Maoism and being poorer than all of Africa...

[@georgedang449]

@@OlJackBurton Why 50 million? Why not 50 billion? You're just throwing made up numbers around, might as well make it bigger. Did the CIA send a couple thousand agents over there to take a census? Or can they tell from satellite photos? Or maybe it came from wikipedia, which as well all know, definitely don't just make stuff up? As far as hard numbers go, Google the population and average life expectancy of China before and after the "hurrrrr evil communists hurrr" took over the place. The problem with this internal propaganda we have here is it dumbs us down. Or maybe we only believe it because we're dumb to begin with. Either way, it's not a good sign.

[@OlJackBurton]

​@@georgedang449 These aren't made up numbers. These are accepted numbers that fall within a range of 15 million to 55 million. But that's just famine deaths. There were also mass killings from torture and violence of people that resisted the communist farming system that numbered 2-3 million and another 1-3 million suicides. All these deaths were in less than 3 years making it more deadly than the deadliest years of WWII. Following the disastrous Great Leap Forward was the almost as disastrous Cultural Revolution where deaths ranged from another several hundred thousand to 20 million. But of course these events are never taught in China... en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Leap_Forward#Famine_deaths en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_Revolution#Death_toll

[@robertbritton6734]

I loved the weatherman gag, gold!

[@jackmackenzie2482]

How much more painfully true can what Bill Maher is saying. An industrious thought comes across the table - and there are so many hands grabbing at it that it’s gone and forgotten about by the time it reaches the other side of the table

[@jamesskinner5625]

Bill mahr says one word: The audience:👏👏👏👏👏👏👏😩😩😩😩

[@johnadams-wp2yb]

They are probably vetted at the door.

[@samus598]

Yeah his audience are complete tools. Oh sure bill people protesting capitalism and advocating less wealth inequality are takers who want free stuff, meanwhile you are a multi millionaire who wants a free pipeline to bring you free water for your giant mansion lawn in the middle of the desert

[@danielgray5756]

Bill’s crushing it! Spot on. Greed. More powerful than love or hate and fuels both. U can only be on top for so long and America is already past that point. This is just a perfect example

[@supaflydann]

Good luck with Pipeline approvals! Your team shuts them down.

[@vinmanr2d2]

Bill is one step ahead as usual !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[@willhiggins9563]

YES BILL! stop throwing money that military projects with undefined end goals, and get some infrastructure and engineering fit for the history books going.

[@krillin876]

I agree with the military being cut, but that still doesn't solve the problem. When San Francisco is paying 2k for tent for a homeless person that actually costs 200, that meas someone is getting rich off that. Meaning long term solutions will never be found..

[@frednicholson]

Its all the regulations and lawsuits. Decades and decades of laws being passed to make people feel good about themselves has created a legal spaghetti that makes doing anything almost impossible and extremely expensive.

[@silvercloud1641]

@@krillin876 Not with a dog eat dog system anyway.

[@homelesspolitician1623]

That would be great. Sadly the left voted in Joe Harris, now we are controlled by the right of center. The right will drag this until they destroy the liberals and take back both sides of the Congress. Then Joe will be impeached at least once and the scary one will gain more power and take what he wants in 24. Then all the snowflake bs will go by the wayside, like usual. Goodnight left, you we the ones that thought these idiots could solve something. They did, how to make a cackling moronnn play president until you get beat.

[@SpacemanXC]

A trans continental water pipe would be one of the greatest engineering feats of our generation. Fuck global warming. We can engineer our way our of it!

[@vstar7196]

“Before America tries to spread democracy around the world, maybe they should try to spread it around their own country.”

[@willchristie2650]

Red states are doing their best to limit democracy as much as possible. It is the only way a minority party can win elections, by keeping large numbers of people from voting.

[@laurenbatson5918]

@@willchristie2650 you're wrong. You should try reading the bills. And then compare those bills to many blue states that have many more restrictions on voting, like number of days, hours of polling places, ID requirements, absentee ballot availability, absentee ballot procedures, etc. The narrative you believe is not supported by the facts. (And I guess the voter ID requirements are no longer "racist" since ID is required to get a vaccine and would be required for a vaccine passport. But logic left the claim of ID being racist years ago, so I'm not holding my breath that anyone's expecting it to return to the conversation.)

[@ernstthalmann4306]

I moved from a red to blue state so my vote actually counts Abolish the electoral college!

[@jdzspace33]

@@ernstthalmann4306 top way to spot someone uneducated is to say what you just said. Smh

[@dariusjackelson9915]

@@willchristie2650 You're a liar Will.

[@americanhindi]

This is a great idea. It should be done 👍🏼

[@annicecaldwell1271]

You're so right on Bill!!! Things that we absolutely need can't get done because of FOOLISH RED TAPE AND MONEY GRABBING 😦

[@denisecost8699]

Bill, you haven't been this funny in a long long time. And smart. Keep going.

[@gabrieleseilo]

It’s the glasses bro can finally see clearly again

[@denisecost8699]

@@gabrieleseilo funny and also a good point!

[@borisvandruff7532]

That weatherman bit was vintage Bill Maher. Amazing.

[@charlesd.3749]

Lmao. I Love you Bill Maher. You are the only one that has saved me from moving completely to the right. Thank you, Thank You!

[@sebtonz1]

Living in the Great Lakes Basin we say better pull from the Pacific because no water is leaving here for there Bill.

[@louurich9087]

Just be glad we saw this coming 15 years ago, and got the Great Lakes Compact signed into law.

[@crazycanuck7811]

A water pipeline wouldnt be an issue to the environment in the case of a breech in the line either.

[@SpacemanXC]

And you would only have to build it to Colorado. Then gravity, and our existing aqueduct network can take care of the rest.

[@fromireland8663]

You are kidding? You wouldn't get 1 mile down the road before there would be an environmental objection because some rare animal/plant habitat was going to be destroyed.

[@GD1082]

Plus NIMBYism

[@calholli]

@@fromireland8663 Don't forget-- you can't just dig a ditch anywhere-- You have to get permission from the land owners for the entire length of the pipeline, which is not an easy task as it is.

[@zenmastermtl]

@@fromireland8663 That's true for a lot of fossil fuel lines cause any minor spill poisons the whole area. But water doesn't have that problem, at least not to anywhere near the same degree. Ya flooding could damage habitat, but it won't turn an entire area toxic for years.

[@mbgaines]

Bill I've never agreed with you more. Too many wanting to have there backs scratched and not enough people wanting to just get what needs to done, well done!!

[@London_J]

My favourite part is that he said let's go to me with the weather.. I think you should do more of these skits where he goes to himself explaining something

[@Kyleramsey999]

My sentiments exactly. Just build a desalination plant and get clean fresh water, just don't politicize it !!!

[@msponsler1]

Bill, Why do we build cities in the middle of deserts, cover them with swimming pools, resorts, casinos, urban grass lawns, and golf courses that require enormous quantities of water? Why do we grow crops in arid lands that cause pumping of enormous quantities of ground water which is draining aquifers? It's like building ski resorts in Mississippi. The development is not compatible with that kind of environment. So a big part of the problem is that the West is over populated, over developed, over farmed, over used and is literally being sucked dry. Western Water overuse in the arid US has drained streams, aquifers, lakes and rivers. In addition to the diminishing Colorado River, a number of lakes in the US are drying up due to irrigation and diversion for public water supplies such as, Tulare Lake in California Owens Lake in California Walker Lake in Nevada Pyramid Lake in Nevada Mono Lake in California Lake Meredith in Texas. Drought, likely caused by climate change, has exacerbated the problem in the West. But, the solution is not pumping in more water to hydrate an unsustainable use of land. Consumption must be reduced. Population expansion in the desert cannot continue, because it's not sustainable. As you suggested, desalination of sea water is feasible. Pipelines are also feasible to a limited extent. Building the pipelines are one thing. Capturing and storing floodwaters to pump from is another. How much land will be flooded to make new lakes to capture floodwater in the East? How many people and farms will be displaced, by the new reservoirs? Does it make sense to remove farmland in wet regions to pump water to dry region farms? What happens when there is a drought in the East? Remember when Atlanta faced a water shortage a few years ago? How much of an increase in water cost are Western consumers willing to pay, because pumping water from Tennessee will add lots to a water bill? Pumping oil is built into the cost of gasoline and other oil products. It will be built into Water cost too. Capitalism is fraught with greed as you rightly highlighted. But greed for water is part of the problem too. We need to stop trying to do the equivalent of building ski resorts in Mississippi.

[@miracleblossom565]

*I will advise you to invest and earn huge like I do and currently handling my Portfolio earning 200% profit with strategies and guideance you will achieve alot*

[@oleanderson1013]

If you live in a desert, don’t expect that anyone deserves a nice green lawn and trees.

[@ksmacco]

Sheesh, a thinking American. Good on you, and keep typing, and trying to educate, at least when you don't have better causes outside of the interwebs. Run for office? I sincerely love the passion, and that tells me you are quite young, but keep it up, and seriously, run for office when your time comes. Australians such as myself want to see America do its best. And for the best Americans to be running the show. Uncle Joe, as we know him here is a source of local pride in America, compared to the last clown. I was in Tokyo, Japan when "t" was elected, and the two mid-western American girls we were with could not be more surprised, ashamed, or apologetic. Shit was crazy and the world laughed at the Huckabee-Sanders version of a once-great nation.

[@liupang00]

While you have a valid point, there is this thing called civilization. You see, if our ancestors did exactly as what you say, humankind would still be trapped in several villages in Africa.

[@tpfine]

Very interesting rebuttal… so it’s not so easy to build infrastructure for water to be pumped into all of the deserts to the west

[@dianadambrosio1]

Love you Bill…don’t ever stop …something WILL come from your thoughts and efforts to make people ..alive…☺️

[@blqest125]

yea. its called the american mainstream media that bill's people control who have caused so much political, social, and moral chaos upon society.

[@robertpaulson6388]

@@blqest125 Jesus christ you sure do comment a lot on a video for someone you don't like - what's the matter? The truth a little to close to home. Regarding another one of your comments it was the deranged far right upturning democracy, trying to steal elections, and just overall sh!ts.

[@pressure609]

that's a damn great idea, MAHER. CONGRATULATIONS.

[@darleneshepard3883]

Good one Bill Maher on the weather and the water for California. We do need the water.

[@jeffdeaniii1866]

Bill has finally found the perfect combo of meds and is pure perfection.

[@blqest125]

oh yes propagandizing for democrats/liberals/progressives. how very honorable of him. lol. gmafb....

[@keithhoss4990]

Yes, he finally took the Red Pill

[@stablegenius365]

Midwest baby! Four balanced seasons and five Great Lakes!

[@GYTW]

I don't hear my farmer saying this this year....

[@krnpowr]

I'm in IL. We have Lake Michigan on our northeast border and the Mississippi river on our entire western border. The upper midwest is probably the last place on earth that will run out of fresh water.

[@rickdonaldson8860]

"Head east any move back in"? Why not? Nobody forced all the extra population to move out into a FUCKING DESERT, just to play golf and avoid snow (frozen water).

[@XalphYT]

And get your grubby hands away from The Great Lakes, California!

[@rliptak2]

And if greedy decadent California has any say they'll drain every drop from all five to give to themselves. After all they're super important California and we're only flyover country.

[@a_little_bit_of_wisdom]

Bill does this often. He explains something he doesn't really know much about, and manages to get certain things right - about something completely different. The amount of oil pumped around is miniscule to the amount of water that's consumed. The cost, and energy used, in pumping is similar. So it's not realistic. But it's true that infrastructure in the US is way too expensive. He's right that it costs too much. Then again, this is poorly studied. It's probably not unions, regulations, etc. It may be layered gov't, county, state, fed. Most likely its overbuilt. We just can't see it, because everything is overbuilt in the US.

[@zenolachance1181]

You are correct that the amount of water used is much less than the amount of oil. But you have to remember that the water supply is nearly achieving availability to all, all we need to do is build enough pipeline to fill in the gap in the supply and demand, not supply the entire state all over again

[@a_little_bit_of_wisdom]

You mean the amount of oil is much less than H2O. CA is a microcosm. Surface H2O is in northern CA, demand is in south. 50% of use isn't surface, is groundwater. CA has huge H2O transport, storage, dam system to redistribute. Cost trillions to build, $37 billion annually. Expand to whole country? Got $5 or $10 trillion?

[@rickesteves4783]

Good to see Bill making sense again.

[@johnbaugh2437]

Everyday I watch a clip of Bill to hear the voice of reason. I’m kind of right of center and he seemed to be far left just 10 years ago. Now he is just the center. The world has changed.

[@nonmagicmike723]

Yeah, he's moved to the center-left about five years ago. He was more radical before that.

[@OlJackBurton]

@@nonmagicmike723 He didn't move much. The world moved and he pretty much just stayed where he was...

[@a5cent]

@@nonmagicmike723 LOL Mahr was never radical. The only way Mahr seems radical is if you're judging him from a far right extremist's view. If we must use this oversimplified left/right yard stick, then for most of the world Mahr is centre right

[@JustCallMeLoathesome]

Let's not fool ourselves. Maher is liberal, but he's not a LEFTIST. And more and more often, his pragmatism is resonating with conservatives and moderates because his liberalism has tempered somewhat. Why? Because he's seeing the astounding negative impact of streamlined leftism. And I believe even he finds it abhorrent.

[@a5cent]

@@JustCallMeLoathesome Depends what you see as leftism and liberalism. Mahr is mostly in line with the Democratic party. He cares more that democrats win than he cares about policy. He went from a Bernie voter to a Klobuchar voter. Nobody who cares even slightly about policy could do that, as the two are opposites on almost everything Politically he is shallow, guided mostly by what appears civil and cultured. It's why he hated Trump. The naive, uneducated, simple minded, plain spoken and rash Trump is what he took issue with. Not so much with Trump's politics . It's milder, but in principle he ascribes to the same idiocy as people on the right who vote for a candidate for no reason other than to "own the libs".

[@MORE1500]

One of Bill's best takes in years. Bravo!!!

[@winfan1978]

Keep telling it like it is Bill!

[@beleg1437]

Don't live in a desert if you prefer more water.

[@alhackman3143]

I’m glad Bill is talking about water in CA! We haven’t built a damn or reservoir in CA for 30 years. It takes years of lawsuits to build a desalination plant because of environmental rules/laws.

[@kevinbossick8374]

Diamond valley lake was completed in 2003. But that is still almost 20 years.

[@terryowen6759]

We got a dam here in Oroville that now has practically no water behind it, this drought is serious

[@SRosenberg203]

You have to have a river to build a dam or reservoir. You have to have snowpack melting off the mountains, and groundwater that hasn't been completely depleted. You don't have any of those things in California, so far as I can tell.

[@kevinbossick8374]

@@SRosenberg203We have all of that. What are you talking about?

[@SRosenberg203]

@@jesusislord3720 You really shouldn't eat lead paint, it causes serious neurological damage.

[@Jed800]

america is the “we’ve been doing it like this for the last 100 years, why change?” of the world

[@jhwheuer]

More like the last 50 years. Nobody really in Arizona before the 70s…

[@jennamakesbugs]

All men I know are like that... of any species.

[@myriamickx7969]

« We have been wasting and spoiling our natural resources since 100 years, so why change? It is our manifest destiny to do so. »

[@Nick-hi9gx]

Just like the Brits before us, the Russians with their Empire, the Chinese until the early 20th, all the way back to the Romans; empires are, by their very nature, EXTREMELY conservative. "This worked to get us to greatness, why change now?"

[@pneulancer]

Hence, why we're still foolishly prosecuting the "War on Drugs" and we've still not adopted the Metric system. Just to name a couple.

[@luluboop1]

Don’t forget politicians pocketing the money from the that unfinished train

[@limepiper3650]

Basically CORRUPTION is the main problem.

[@krisdemars1355]

Blackwater

[@billpool1217]

Tell Nestlé they have to pay for all the water they stole, and you'll have your funding for the pipeline.

[@phiksit]

And then the oil companies will buy out Nestle, build water pipelines and it'll cost as much as gasoline.

[@kennethkimmel4652]

@@phiksit Per gallon. Gas is pretty cheap.

[@user-em6ie2be7x]

How about stop letting Nestle steal all of California's Water?

[@slayer6078]

How about the vineyards and almond plantation which sucks more water.

[@SpacemanXC]

Nestle does suck, but I don't see any reason why we shouldn't engineer our way through global warming. Being able to pump excess water across the country would be super useful.

[@Annapurna818]

Nestle does that all over the world.

[@dailybunnymemes2545]

As a resident of Houston, where it floods every time it rains too hard, the lightbulb just came on.

[@dddhhh2612]

Nice piece!

[@DaBadguy2012]

Finally someone drives this point home, awesome work Bill!! 💯

[@michaelm3691]

You'd need to move a vastly bigger volume of water than we're doing with oil, and it would require a shitload of energy and massive pumpsystems. Still feasible, but not optimal. The better solution is probably desalinisation which was also suggested here, but that still requires a shitload of energy. The advantage is that you can use it to balance demand of green energy, but that would require more plants since they're not running constantly then and a lot more green energy which requires dwindling raw materials. However, there is one solution that fixes everything. A major investment in nuclear plants. With this, desalinisation plants can run non-stop and excess energy can even be used to pull CO2 out of the air.

[@turtleenaitor]

Desalination is already being done in California, they just opened up a massive new plant in Carlsbad

[@michaelm3691]

@@turtleenaitor As a Dane, I feel like Carlsbad was named by someone who really doesn't like our beer Carlsberg

[@Winterascent]

Funny how Bill freaks out about Global Warming, and makes bad comparisons which have nothing to do with moving the amount of water he is talking about to solve the problem, but seems totally unaware of the costs to do so, especially the energy. Afghanistan was a mistake, but moving water 2,000 miles and over the continental divide, the Sierra or coastal ranges, the Colorado and Rio Grande rivers will never end and will consume enormous amounts of energy.

[@geosync9742]

@@Winterascent he also mentioned desalination. He's no civil engineer but at least he's trying to start a conversation.

[@jbrisby]

Hell, why stop there? Energy from nuclear plants could be used to pull CO2 out of the air and use it to manufacture gasoline, thus removing the need for expensive and dirty electric cars.

[@rachaelelkins]

Many of those eastern places facing floods were in severe drought the rest of the year. Desalination, yes. Piping it across the country, maybe not a long-term option.

[@ep6725]

Right after he said this the end credits scroll by, and the last credit was for the three covid compliance officers.

[@ppj0241]

Sure, as soon as they stop watering golf courses and lawns. Pissing away massive amounts of water on almonds. You have water, California. You need to use it more wisely. Like, I don't know, not let Nestle bottle all of your water and sell it?

[@Haxerous]

Don't forget avacados either. Growing those in a dry region is pretty terrible idea

[@eriklambert3809]

The population is too large for the area. And diverting water like they are doing is killing everyone else.

[@jacobtebbe4435]

He has covered that as well

[@Buzzramjet]

Bullshit. While I agree on the almont thing getting rid of greenery will make the situation worse towards green house warming. WE NEED MORE GREENERY. Build Desalination plants. San Diego built one and solved the salt problem. Too small though. But to say stop watering everything is just plain fucking stupid. Get rid of the greenery and watch the temperatures go up. Your idea is just plain fucking stupid. ...except for the almond thing but we all agree on that waste of water. Grow hemp instead and help the environment with ONE percent of the water they use and use 100 percent of the plant.Better paper, better lubricant, medical, etc. Almonds are a waste of water..

[@gabrielpatten6939]

@@Buzzramjet yup. It would be just like the "dustbowl"

[@menachr]

As a Jew I laughed so hard at the “we have Jews here” line. Totally hilarious

[@miracleblossom565]

*I will advise you to invest and earn huge like I do and currently handling my Portfolio earning 200% profit with strategies and guideance you will achieve alot*

[@gtpcruiser02]

The smart Jews who received billions yearly from you guessed it the American taxpayers put that money to good use for themselves proving again that they are critical common sense thinkers and doers.

[@gaillewis5472]

Happy New Year!

[@SRosenberg203]

@@gtpcruiser02 Yeah as a Jew who's lived in Brooklyn for my entire life, I find it a little frustrating that the American taxpayers are subsidizing Israel's development ahead of our own communities. I support Israel for the most part (I really wish they'd stop pandering to the fundamentalist Orthodox all the time though), but I'd still rather have the government spending my tax dollars fixing up MY community, rather than theirs.

[@awb19892]

ok

[@tracyclark7560]

wow. 1 of your bestest Bill

[@ReeceBaleOffical]

Thank you for being reasonable to both sides of thought..... this is the Bill Maher I remember.

[@skler69]

The US could have a desalination system, but that would fall under infrastructure which politicians proclaim the peasants aren't worth the cost.

[@redbaron6805]

They don't really need a desalination system as even the great lakes have been experiencing record flood levels as the west remains dry. Just pump it into the reservoirs in the West when there too much in the East.

[@redbaron6805]

@@user-hf2dr7sh4y True. It is always comical when the GOP is making fun of California, yet represent states like KY, AL, MS, AR etc. which are literally on the bottom in every single metric, whether quality of life, education, income, life expectancy, etc. The only thing they can claim is that they are top 5 in Meth production and consumption..

[@krnpowr]

@@redbaron6805 Desalination would be more cost effective. You would actually need high-powered generators to push all that fresh water from the upper midwest to the southwest.

[@whocares2087.1]

Biden is investing in infrastructure. So you can't generalize all politicians.

[@purplenurp5590]

@@user-hf2dr7sh4y did you just say republican overlords in California? Really are you trolling right now? Lmfao no wonder this country is falling apart

[@Seinfeldfour]

Spot on. And to think…he was once deemed “far left” - it’s amazing how much we’ve devolved Bc of political nonsense.

[@normandy2501]

I think that's because people (conservatives at the very least) thought that a leftist and liberal were the same person.

[@nyetzdyec3391]

@@normandy2501 Considering how Bill talks about virtually every Republican he actually talks about... You can't blame people for making that association, at least where Bill is concerned.

[@blqest125]

and who is responsible for all of this political nonsense that has devolved american society? if you need a hint, tell bil maher to look in the mirror because its his people who are responsible for the political, social, and moral chaos being perpetrated upon american society by the media. the media whose historical control bill maher tried to pin on chinese people. on this very show.

[@berto6050]

@@normandy2501 We know the difference... Probably because a lot of us are former liberals. No one in government represents liberals anymore. So you pick a side. Identitarian authoritarianism, or conservatism.

[@InfinityR319]

He is still the same as where he was, but the left has shifted so far left that it makes Bill Maher looks like a conservative by comparison.

[@InvictvsNox]

Bill would make a fantastic weatherman.

[@ethanaylett]

“They call can’t get in covered wagons, head east, and move back in with their parents…” 😂

[@josephvandevander6848]

This is a problem that isn’t getting nearly the attention it should. It’s continuing to get worse and worse. There should probably already be a mass exodus from the Southwest.

[@davidwright873]

He's clowning on a level that is unprecedented. If we don't wake up and pull our heads outa our asses, when we actually do, the cost will be phenominal...to say the least...No high speed rail and a dry as phk west coast....wtf over??

[@alphanerd7221]

@@RockpileRanter You know flood zones are always next to non flood zones right?

[@josephvandevander6848]

The east coast doesn’t ALL flood ALL the time, FYI. But at least we HAVE WATER HERE. 🙄 Idk if you’re aware, but it’s pretty tough for human beings to survive without water. When you wake up one day to find nothing coming out of your faucets, I think you’ll change your tune. You’ll be packing up and moving as Far East as you can. IF you don’t die of thirst or get shot and killed over your case of Dasani on the way. Get where I’m coming from now?? 🤦‍♂️

[@schmoab]

Most of the water is used for agriculture. There is plenty for humans to drink.

[@josephvandevander6848]

🤦‍♂️No. No, there’s apparently less and less to drink &yes agriculture uses a lot of water bc you need water for crops. See how Lake Meade and the Colorado River are drying up? That’s not good. That’s basically all the water for the entire southwest. That water also creates most of your electricity. Again..And as this recent “it’s not that bad” reply shows, ppl might be in mass denial about this.

[@billpetersenjr.5781]

If Congress had listened to John Wesley Powell's recommendations to not inhabit the desert then half of America wouldn't be suffering from water shortages. Coupled with planting crops in Arizona and California that require more water than is available which is why they have to pipe water 100s of miles already.

[@cyberneticbutterfly8506]

The opportunity cost of all the value created by the people in the desert half probably outweighs the detriment of the water problem. People in the desert half of America likely created mines, factories etc. that traded for resources from other countries or states so all things considered I don't think it was a net loss by far. It just has a downside that's a pretty bothersome thing.

[@theoriginaldashriprock]

Don't move to the desert and expect us to ship you water.

[@andypearson3776]

Don't move to the desert and expect water in a drought