In mythological Los Angeles, all swimming pools are 82 degrees, the boy always gets the girl, the air is pure and nobody ever has to use the restroom.

In real life, however, L.A. flushes just like the rest of us. And where does that sewage stream flow? North. That's what Kern County is for.

Kern County voters are looking at the business end of Southern California's big gun.

The City of Los Angeles has joined with other Southern California counties and agencies to file a federal lawsuit to block the ban voters approved in June on hauling sludge to Kern County, where it is smeared on farm land.

They have brought in the fire power of national law firms that have represented sludge applicators and disposal companies in legal battles over similar bans in other states.

They have declared war, bringing an army to fight what they hope will be a lone, underfunded rural county.

The stakes are extremely high for those of us who depend on clean air to breathe, unpolluted water to drink and untainted crops to eat.