How bad is the SoCal Storm? It's nothing to most of you. Four or five days of rain that drop six inches of moisture is just annoying. But SoCal is a near desert. Annual rainfall rarely exceeds twelve inches. Our vegetation is almost all imported from somewhere else; the trees, plants, and some grasses are not natural to the area. BUT, since we are a near desert the plants and trees spread their roots horizontally; they do not send them deep into the ground. So when an unusual amount of rain falls on our shallow rooted plant life it begins to give way. I have lived here for thirty years and I've never experienced a storm of this duration. When I lived in NoCal a storm like this would have been considered nothing. SoCal roads that never develop potholes are crumbling. Roofs collapse from the weight of accumulations of rain water. Entire hills move. Disruptions to truck transportation, ship unloadings, and the ruination of surfing due to the fucking winds make life miserable. The cactus plants floating down the storm drains are not good visuals, movie stars find threir drug connections are stalled on a freeway, Malibu Lefties can't be heard blaming Bush for the tragedy. Poor us. Get your federal aid dollars ready.