Removed from the situation

While I appreciate any type of insightful reporting and commentary, I will say it is more than odd that a Chicago blogger with little to no connection to Georgia opted to randomly chastize our state for its water management (it's even more weird seeing how he openly asked 'Georgia readers' to help him with a few specifics and, in two instances, referred to the state capitol in Augusta).

It isn't that I necessarily think he's terribly off-base - and I don't think his primary Georgia detractor in the comments is particularly on-base either - it's more that Perlstein insists on ignoring the perfect storm that resulted in our water crisis, preferring instead to transform the argument into a political and ideological one.

We're in this problem not because of one party's arrogance or shortsightedness, but rather because of a variety of factors ...

- Atlanta's explosive growth that kicked up demand for water, with much of it being needlessly wasted;

- Until the peak of the drought, there was no emphasis on educating the public on conservation and providing them with the resources to effectively do so;

- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers mandated that Lake Lanier release 3.2 billion gallons of water per day toward downstream populations that lack similar demands;

- And, oh yeah, a drought to end all droughts gripped North Georgia.