Fines for Water?!
Has the government gone too far?
Introduction
Did you know that you could be fined for something as simple as drinking too much water? How is it fair to put another tax on people who are already barely making enough money to scrape by as it is? If you still don't believe this is a bad idea, then let me give you a few reasons why.
Why We Should Fight the Fine
Reason 1: Our Location
Some scientists point to the water scandal at Flint as a reason to use less water -because people frankly do not have enough! That is not wrong . . . in those areas. We are from Columbus, Ohio. We have plenty of water to go around. If we use more, that doesn't mean that they are getting any less! In fact, have you ever heard of the water cycle? The more we use, the more water gets flushed through the sewer systems, cleaned, and then evaporated out so that it actually CAN reach places that are having a dry spell. Maybe, the argument should actually be that if we want to help people who are having a water shortage, we should use more water!
Reason 2: Is this Affordable? (OR FAIR?)
Here's what I want to know: how much is this fine going to be, and when are they going to issue it and how are families supposed to even know if they are using too much water? We don't have a gauge in our houses that blinks red every time we use too much by governmental standards. These standards could easily be tainted as well, because the government has the ability to make these water fines incredibly unreasonable so that they can rake in more money. Can we trust our corrupt government with this task? Or will they be able to fine us $500 for using a few drop extra to wash our dogs?
Counterargument: "35 gallons to survive . . ." But what if we want to thrive?
I read an article that issued the following statistic: "It takes 35 gallons of water for someone to survive, yet people are using 80." Yes, if I was stuck on a desert island, then I would need 35 droplets of water to drink in order to survive. Yet survival doesn't calculate in showers. It doesn't calculate in large families who will probably be using more water than smaller ones. It doesn't calculate in if it's Thanksgiving and you're using extra water to cook, or if you have a new puppy who needs a bath after rolling in something every five minutes. It's important to notice that here in America, our goal is not just to survive, but to thrive. I, for one, want to ensure that we can thrive in the way that we want to. We have a right to basic human needs, like water. The government shouldn't have this right to tell us how to use it, or take it away from us. It'd be like the government saying that we should eat spinach every day, and fining us when we don't because we aren't healthy. Food is our right. Water is our right. We should fight against the fine.