"If I got caught, had to go through the humiliating process of standing before a judge, I would damn well never put myself at risk again."

This is where it breaks down when dealing with America. People have no shame anymore. They're taught to be proud of whatever they are doing and not give a fuck about anything else. Capitalism above all else "I got mine, fuck everyone else" is the banner most people seem to fly in western culture.

Haven't we been manipulating weather through cloud seeding and other techniques for decades now? I mean wide-scale irrigation is weather manipulation if you want to get right down to it.