It is not surprising that the drought, like any hyped up emergency, has given Raleigh another reason to take power from the people. Yesterday, Mike Easley voted himself more authority by passing legislation that would “force local water systems to share.” It also requires systems seeking state subsidy to “charge rates that encourage conservation.”

Easley remarked that the legislation didn’t need language to empower him to regulate well water because he already had the authority to do that in emergencies. Explaining the complex science underlying the principle to the ignorant masses, Easley likened drawing water from an aquifer to a car pulling out of a private driveway onto a public road. Had he wanted to dumb it down a few more notches, he might have likened it unto himself, extracting more and more power from his constituents.