The laborious datum on Cali ’s biggest water hogsmay not be publicly useable , but we all have middle and a smartphone . So , as another season of “ exceptional drought ” descend on the West , people crazy of witness egregious piddle waste in their backyard aretaking to societal mediato vent .

droughtshaming is blowing up . And it ’s shoving another of California ’s problems — vast income inequality — into an uncomfortable spotlight .

When drouth shaming first started last summer , it was a State Department sanctioned activity . California passed a law that could fine resident up to $ 500 per day for uneconomical bodily process that include hosing down driveways and overwatering lawn . ( Recently , thestate governor proposedto up that max daily punishment to $ 10,000 . ) Now , as the state of matter enters its 4th year of drought , public care has start to shift toward some of the more obscene example of water system excess : famous person like Kim Kardashian and Kanye West , whose straggle fleeceable lawns and shine pools are literally oases in a desert , Ritz hotel that water - mist their wealthy supporter ( wtf ? ) , andcertain wondrous corporationsthat source bottled water from drouth - stricken region .

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@maggiebeauchamp@NoreenR1@ChristiChat@cherhere ’s commie lover Sean penn ’s lush green lawn#DroughtShamingpic.twitter.com / hHnTyzbDwO

— Lisa ( @Rockprincess818)May 11 , 2015

Nothing is worse than talentless liberal celebrities preaching to the masses but not leading by example.#WakeUpAmerica#DroughtShaming

Dji Drone

Dear@RitzCarlton#RanchoMirage , love u but w unvarying misting , please do n’t coerce us into#droughtshaming … with @amykavanaugh@shoreen

— Gail Becker ( @gailfbecker)May 3 , 2015

In other words , the societal media - fueled swell of # droughtshaming we ’re now bearing watcher to has a decidedly class - witting caliber to it . That should n’t come as too much of a surprisal . piss , The Guardian report , is tied up with money in California to the point where a mortal ’s wealth can essentially be judge by the color of his lawn :

Ms 0527 Jessica Jones Daredevil Born Again

In Los Angeles , one of the most unequal cities in America , while lawns in poorer part of townspeople have mostly gone browned – because residents do not want to put on the line fines , because they do not require to pay higher pecker anyway , because they may have less straightaway incentive to concern about prop value – lawn in hyper - wealthy places like Beverly Hills , Bel Air and Pacific Palisades are still reportedly irresistibly unripened .

Drought shaming alone wo n’t figure out the West ’s water crisis — more probable , anational action at law planfor tackling and adapting to water scarceness will be require — but acknowledging the severity of the crisis and creating a culture of intolerance around water waste is an important start . As Gizmodo ’s Alissa Walkerpoints out , the metropolis of Montecito cut its weewee usage 48 pct after making its water system data populace , a move that endanger mellow - profile wasters include Oprah Winfrey .

Shame , we ’re learning , can be a powerful ally . [ The Guardian ]

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