The Long, Hot Summer

Approximately 50 percent of the United States is currently experiencing unusually dry or drought condition, according to the US Drought Monitor.

Cyclical droughts are a normal part of nature. In the US Southwest, they come and go in 20- to 30-year cycles, and within each cycle there are good years and bad years. But accumulated convincing evidence that this latest drought is worse than its mid-20th-century predecessor.

Some interesting stats …

1. America's Southeast is suffering its driest spring on record.
   
2. In Florida, the vast waters of Lake Okeechobee — second in size only to Lake Michigan among the freshwater lakes of the contiguous states — have receded so much that parts of the lakebed recently caught fire.
   
3. The Jack Daniels distillery in Lynchburg, Tenn., has warned it may have to reduce or suspend production, because the iron-free spring waters on which it relies are flowing as much as two-thirds below normal.
   
4. Arizona is the fastest-growing state in the union. Its population increased by 3.6 percent last year. Nevada is No. 2: Its population grew by 3.5 percent. Both are mostly desert.
   
5. The population of California is expected to grow by 30 per cent over the next two decades: That would mean adding three cities the size of Los Angeles to the state.
   

You can read more by CLICKING HERE.

Meanwhile, the era of cheap food is coming to an end.

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