I am a James Bond fan and even though I do not like the new James Bond movies, I remain fascinated by the plot of Quantum Solace. The portion of the plot that is so intriguing relates to the fact that the bad guys were in fact storing and hiding water from the Bolivian government. The plot itself is not all that far-fetched. The difference is that I see it happening in California, not Bolivia.
The first thing that struck me about the California situation is that the government has deliberately turned off the water supply to the farmers in the San Fernando Valley, with the express intention of forcing them off their farms. However, what really got me thinking about “plots” is the way in which this water was used as a bribe to get Dirty Harry Reid’s health abomination passed through the House of Representatives in the U.S. Congress. Yes, that is correct, it was used as a bribe to two of the Congress Critters to get them to change their vote from No to Yes. Shame on those critters because they fell for the bribe.
However, a more intriguing situation has just been brought to my attention because an immigrant Persian has filed a complaint against the billionaires behind Fiji Water – Stewart and Lyndy Resnick. The story itself is intriguing because it seems to involve a large reservoir of water. Here is a part of the story:
FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — They grew their fortune in the California sun, turning pedestrian fruits and nuts into a vast and varied empire that secured their place in Hollywood.
Stewart and Lynda Resnick’s flashy bottles of Fiji Water and POM Wonderful are now coveted across the globe. Their donations keep the lights on in art museums across the country. And Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Arianna Huffington count them among their dearest friends.
But as their market share rises worldwide, one of the billionaires’ competitors is fighting back, accusing the Western power couple of profiting at the public’s expense, court records and interviews show.
Now, as drought-stricken California weighs whether to give private companies more control in managing its scarce water supplies, a new lawsuit claiming the Resnicks violated utilities law by making money from a vast, taxpayer-funded underground reservoir is causing a stir in the state Capitol.
“Water is a public resource, owned by the people,” said Democratic Assemblyman Jared Huffman of San Rafael. “We shouldn’t be giving away public funds to private sector interests, let alone choosing winners and losers in the business world.”
The Resnicks, who live in a Beverly Hills mansion and have a second home in Aspen, Colo., are among the nation’s largest corporate farmers and are generous philanthropists and political donors, giving $536,000 to Democratic and Republican California governors in the last decade.
The Los Angeles Business Journal estimates the couple’s empire is worth $1.5 billion. It includes about 120,000 acres in California’s Central Valley — where they say they own more fresh citrus, almond and pistachio trees than anyone else in the country — and a facility akin to the Fort Knox of water.
That kind of success, Lynda Resnick said in a telephone interview, can inspire jealousy, and likely motivated this most recent “nuisance” lawsuit. Her husband declined to be interviewed.
Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2010/04/10/la-billionaires-sued-over-calif-water-sales/#ixzz0kmP8LVAX
The essential part of this plot is that the Resnicks seem to be cornering the market on pistachio nuts. On top of that they seem to pride themselves on being able to beat lawsuits against them. It seems that they are very high profile when it comes to lawsuits.
The reason that it reminds me of Quantum solace is the fact that this is tied to a water supply situation in time of drought. It is also tied to how the water is dispersed to others, and the fact that taxpayer funds were used to built water storage that is now in the hands of a private business. It really makes me wonder where the writers of the plot for Quantum Solace got their ideas. Were they really thinking of Bolivia with its now Marxist government, or were they thinking of this developing situation with water supplies in California? Ah the intrigue of it all.
And good luck to the small person who is taking on the greedy billionaires.
Posted by Aussie 
Aussie
