It’s absolutely true.
Don’t believe me? Turn off your water supply for about 1 year and report back.
The natural conditions of Santa Barbara, Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego Counties do not support the population that exists here. I’ve never argue otherwise. But that does not mean that a dry, semi-arid region is the same as a desert. As I posted, Madrid and Los Angeles get about the same rainfall annually. Neither were built in a desert.