Drought… what’s the problem?

Having emerged basically unscathed from the first wave of the pandemic, New Zealand’s attention now returns to “anything else.”

One thing is a drought affecting big chunks of the country. Here in Auckland the reservoirs got down to around 40% capacity, enough to trigger modest restrictions on water use. In some of the agricultural areas, it’s been much worse, with the harvest essentially ruined for many farmers and lots of livestock slaughtered before they starved in the fields.

I took this picture of a lush lavender hedge and a bright green lawn under a drizzling sky thinking how it can be hard to juxtapose the statistical, long-term, and remote reality of the drought with the immediate evidence of our own eyes. Doesn’t look like a drought to me, what’s the problem? As long as there are snowballs, global warming might just be a hoax.

And so it is with the pandemic. I’m at this pool party in Missouri, and I’m not sick, and that hot girl over there isn’t sick either. In fact, I don’t see anybody sick at all. What’s the problem?

Is it the same with racial violence? I’ve never killed anyone, and that black guy with the Mercedes seems to be doing all right. So what’s the problem?

And is it the same with dictators? First they came…