Parched Western states need help to avoid even worse outcomes.<\/b>
\nThis is Bloomberg Opinion Today, a water authority of Bloomberg Opinion\u2019s opinions. Sign up here. In Paolo Bacigalupi\u2019s 2015 cli-fi novel \u201c The Water Knife,\u201d a hitman for the Southern Nevada Water Authority rides through the desert in a Tesla taking out the water supplies of rival states and factions. In 2015, this was speculative fiction. In 2021, it\u2019s tomorrow\u2019s headlines. Parched Western states and factions are already fighting over scarce water, writes Amanda Little. Right now, they\u2019re using Tesla-driving lawyers instead of Tesla-driving hitmen. But given water\u2019s importance to everything from agriculture to hydroelectric power \u2014 not to mention the whole sustaining-human-life thing \u2014 its scarcity inspires not just scary stories but also actual armed conflict. Without some heavy government investment in water infrastructure, the Water Knives won\u2019t stay sheathed forever. Yes, there\u2019s that \u201cI\u201d word again. Sorry. President Joe Biden\u2019s infrastructure plan spends a teensy bit on Western water infrastructure, but it won\u2019t be nearly enough. And even that paltry amount hinges on the political Jenga game Biden and Congress are playing over his plan. Biden last week was almost the guy who trips over the cat and knocks down the tower, with some ill-considered comments that nearly wrecked a fragile bipartisan agreement. Jonathan Bernstein suggests Biden\u2019s near-goof won\u2019t matter; the votes are there or they aren\u2019t. Isn\u2019t it fun that this is what stands between us and a future of Tesla-driving hitmen? The biggest problem with space travel is not xenomorphs or the fact that humans can\u2019t build ships with warp drives, but that space is just a nightmare for human bodies. There\u2019s no air. There\u2019s no gravity. And it\u2019s constantly showered in deadly radiation. Some science fiction solves these problems by pretending they don\u2019t exist (see Wars, Star). Other sci-fi assumes humans will reshape their bodies to handle it better. Like \u201cThe Water Knife,\u201d give or take a few decades, that day isn\u2019t so far off. That\u2019s the premise of a new book by Dr. Christopher E. Mason of Weill Cornell Medicine. In an interview with Adam Minter, Mason says humans could edit their own genes to handle radiation and other space horrors (though maybe not xenomorphs) to help them colonize Mars and beyond. It won\u2019t happen tomorrow. For one thing, the technology is still too new. But it\u2019s getting there: Intellia Therapeutics and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals this weekend released promising human-trial data for Crispr gene-editing tech. Sam Fazeli writes the results suggest we can safely target specific genes for zapping, which would be a huge breakthrough for fighting diseases. It\u2019s also maybe a huge Slip \u2019N Slide to ethical dead zones \u2014 real \u201cyour scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could\u201d kind of stuff. But maybe also another step on the way to the stars. Further Space-Race Reading: Virgin Galactic is a meme stock now, giving Richard Branson capital to invest. \u2014 Chris Byrant A 6-3 conservative split on the Supreme Court should be a nightmare for liberals. But after a slew of decisions by just such a court, the reality has been far more complicated. The conservative faction has split down the middle, writes Noah Feldman, with Chief Justice John Roberts, Amy Coney Barrett and Brett Kavanaugh on the moderate side and Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch and Clarence Thomas pushing for more extreme outcomes. The moderates keep joining liberals in decisions that avoid sudden movements that might spook the electorate and make the court look partisan. This is perhaps not what Donald Trump had in mind when he put Barrett and Kavanaugh on the court. It\u2019s almost certainly not what liberals expected. But it may be the way Roberts and his like-minded justices fend off big court reforms. To be sure, the court is still full-on conservative when it wants to be. Its decision last week cutting off labor organizers\u2019 access to California farms, upending an old state law, was an example of conservative judicial activism, writes Noah Feldman. But it didn\u2019t get much attention beyond some angry progressives. That may be just how the Roberts Court likes it. Further Politics Reading: While its rivals make bankers happy with frantic deal-making and borrowing, Tara Lachapelle notes Netflix makes content creators happy, which helps explain its durable lead. Brevan Howard turning down new money because it\u2019s got too much is a sign of better times for macro hedge-fund managers, writes Mark Gilbert. America\u2019s Afghanistan withdrawal is already causing problems. Biden must work with allies and rivals to keep the country from falling apart. \u2014 Bloomberg\u2019s editorial board A takeover would do Credit Suisse some good. Just the fear of it should make management fly right. \u2014 Chris Hughes Rental inflation is now becoming a thing, and it could stick around. \u2014 Conor Sen Investing is the opposite of what it was three years ago. \u2014 Matt Levine Autocrats are using homophobia and transphobia to whip up populations to stay in power. \u2014 Clara Ferreira Marques Emmanuel Macron\u2019s party flopped in weekend elections, but Macron himself is still very popular. \u2014 Lionel Laurent The bureaucratic hassles of Covid may last longer than the disease. \u2014 Niall Ferguson Amazon is using robots to fire workers. Facebook won in court. Abu Dhabi is using facial Covid scanners. Mongooses live in a society. (h\/t Ellen Kominers) A Wisconsin dairy made a 3,832-foot-long string cheese for reasons. (h\/t Mike Smedley) Researchers find a way to hack ATMs by waving a phone. Denisova Cave has been a hot spot for 300,000 years. (h\/t Scott Kominers for the past two kickers) Notes: Please send string cheese and complaints to Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.net. Sign up here and follow us on Twitter and Facebook. To contact the author of this story: Mark Gongloff at mgongloff1@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Brooke Sample at bsample1@bloomberg.net<\/p>\n