Water, water, not quite everywhere

It doesn't take much to confirm pessimist's dim view of the future, but if you put aside global warming, the financial crisis and colony collapse disorder, a big potential indicator of future instability is water shortage.

Try this for size: what does this list of countries have in common?

Bahrain, Libya, Yemen, Egypt, Tunisia, Syria.

Well, yes, they're all revolting. But the main point is that they all suffer from acute water shortages.

Here's a 'nice' quote:

"Arguably, the most fundamental of the causes of the Arab spring's unrest is the crumbling of a social contract that linked cheap water with subservience to dictators".

Two articles on this topic which are worth a read:

The Middle East is running dry - and into the perfect storm?
What does the Arab world do when its water runs out?

Obviously, living within a stone's throw of 89km³ of water, I probably shouldn't be worrying too much. But hey...