High Court: Govts Can Take Property for Econ Development

Bloomberg News

[Helmholtz]

U.S. Supreme Court says cities have broad powers to take property.

[SoIA-79]

Yeah, but today they stretched the elastic so far it broke.

The Constitution has been broken for a while, this decision was just the latest jackboot to the face.

Game over, folks. Country's gone. Serf City, here we come!

America: A nice non-Soviet country while it lasted.

[lentulusgracchus]

Living in a single family home on your own plot of land will come to be seen be condemned by opinion leaders, media, and authorities as selfish, along with being overweight, not having health insurance, smoking cigarettes, driving a car, owning substantial quantities of cash, eating meat, or "hoarding".

I bellyfeel doubleplusgood NewThinkers! I bellyfeel doubleplusgood prolefeed! I bellyfeel Big Brother!

[Old_Mil]

This is the worst day in the history of this country since September 11th.

This is worse than September 11th. As bad as that was, it didn't destroy us as a nation. Didn't even come close. Decisions like this on the other hand...

[SoIA-79]

It seems to be true, I took a look over at their thread on the subject and they are pretty PO'ed.

Aside from all the tinfoil hattery they seemed to be most upset that the liberals on the court made up the majority.

Only a few of them seemed to grasp why the conservative's were in dissent.

As someone said upthread: "When all the inmates align their views on an issue, the warden had better take note."

Looks like you hit the high points of what should be on the petition.

[Old_Mil]

I imagine the outcome would be different if seven of the nine were appointed by Libertarians instead of Republicans.. ;^)

You know what? I'm a Constitution Party voter myself, but it probably would have been.

[Old_Mil]

Buying homes in established residential areas carry zero risk.

Ask the folks in Bridgeton, Missouri about that - and that was a traditional ED case for airport expansion. With this new ruling, look out.

[Old_Mil]

You seem not to get it. The Bushes are Business Wing Republicans, Yacht Clubbers who use the law and government and "principles" the way you use a knife and fork: they only work when they're a one-way conveyor belt.

Hamiltonian business Republicans don't have principles, they have bank accounts. That is the fundamental division within the Republican Party.

They will NOT defend your property rights.

You, on the other hand, get it completely. Or, as a less eloquent wag put it, "there are country club Republicans, and country music Republicans."

[tomakaze]

I'm as pissed off as everyone else about this, but I'm seeing alot of "revulotion" talk wich is BS. we dont need a revolution, we need a Restoration - and they only way we're going to do that it by adopting a hardline grassroots States Rights movement.
The way to fight this is too get control of your local and state governments. elect people who will say NO.
this especially includes county sheriffs (who can do ALOT to curtail illegal federal intrusion if they are of the right mindset and know they have the backing of their consitutuents).
Any solution proposed to end this type of crap via federal elections (from state reps to presidential) is doomed to failure rom the getgo. they flap their lips about what a sewer washington dc is but once they get there they treat it like a hot tub.
Act localy. get the right people into the STATE and local governments, who will say NO.
make a pre roosevelt view of the consitution as a LIMIT on federal power and a commitment to enforcement of the 10th ammendment the litmus test for any candidate for office. since these elections are more localized it's easier to check backgrounds on candidates and know wether they're sincerely commited or BS artists.
Oh and avoid farking lawyers, or anyone with an "ivy league" degree like the plague. jackholes like that have been running things for far too long which is why we're in the state we're in.
Use the same litmus test on senators - Senators used to be selected by legislatures as advocates for the individual States against the federal government. we'd be alot better off if that was still the case.
hardline, grassroots states rights paltform. no compromises.

[Old_Mil]

I think Bush and Republican Legislators WILL back property rights. Its a slam dunk.

No chance. The administration was going to file a brief on behalf of the homeowners and backed off when petitioned by developers.

Also, we can flog the Democrats on this issue. ALL their Justices supported this decision. Message: "Vote Democrat, keep losing your property rights..."

My honest opinion is that this has escalated well beyond the point of partisan politics and that this once we need to (egads) work together to slap some sense into the Washington elites that brought us this fiasco.

[SoIA-79]

post-Constitutional America bump.

[An.American.Expatriate]

I grow weary of your constant, incorrect comparisons of the Us and French Systems of Government.

The Federal Courts, constitutionally, do not have jurisdiction of this, and many other matters.

Under the constitution, the people give powers to the government, under the French & other European systems, governments grant rights to the people.

That the US has moved to a european system, does not mean that the constitution itself is at fault. It is ultimately the fault of the people. We have allowed this to happen for far too long.

You claim that the courts in France may not rule, after the fact, that a law is unconstitutional. This means you have rights by whim of the majority. If the Parlaiment were to pass aN "unconstitutional law", revking the citizens right to elect the parlaiment, according to you, the courts can not strike this down. This is commonly refered to as tyranny.

I prefer the US system, even WITH it so-called faults.

Try really understanding what the words "We the People" actually means.

[E.G.C.]

BTTT!!!!!!!

[An.American.Expatriate]

Private property rights in Europe, at least in people's homes, are more protected than in the US.

BS. In an earlier post you claimed that the parlament can pass "unconstitutional" laws and that the courts are powerless to uphold the constitution. Thus, the whim of the majority determines what rights you have at any given time.

At least "technically", that is NOT the way it works in the US, this case being just one of a long stream of exceptions.

[CDHart]

"We have allowed this to happen for far too long."

There is the root of the problem. Too few of us have been paying attention for far too many years.

Carolyn

[TXBSAFH]

This is the second worst supreme court decisions ever, second only to Roe V Wade.

[An.American.Expatriate]

Can anyone explain how the US Constitution is violated if a City condemns land so that it can later resell it to a developer in order to promote the General Welfare of the community or promote economic development? If it does, then I musta missed that lesson in law school.

By "condeming" the land, the government is the sole arbitrator of what the "fair market failure" of said land is. Add a normal dose of "corruption", and the property owner is simply "screwed".

Furthermore, in this case, the land was not "condemned". It was simply determined that a different owner would provide mor revenue for the city than the current owner(s). Once THAT becomes the standard, ANY property can be taken, at ANY time by the government and given to another, simply because the new owrner will pay more into the cities coffers.

This is very much in line with the recent rulings regarding interstate commerce. Since just about everything a person can conceivably produce is "just one step away" from interstate commerce, the Federal Government can regulate EVERYTHING you do in "your" home.

[An.American.Expatriate]

It is the lack of will to rebalance the US Constitution by assigning the final authority to make decisions to a different, elected branch of government. Right now, final authority rests in the Supreme Court. As long as that is so, you will get one decision after another of a Roe v. Wade, guns-are-commerce and regulable (to zero), Walmart- can-have-your-house variety.

Stop repeating your nonsense. The FINAL AUTHORITY is the people. We elect the House and the Senate. If we want change, we must demand that the House and Senate pass laws/ammendments which protect our rights istead of erroding them.

The court "assumed" the authority to adjudicate what the law means. The people have "accepted" this usurption of power and the congress is all to willing to continue to allow it as they can wash thier collective hands of all bad decisions. This is NOT what the constitution was designed to allow.

The US Constitution, as written, is still valid. We, the People just need to reaffirm it's validity. There is NO NEED to change it and there is no need to move back to older, far more restictive forms of government (aka European Parlamentarian Forms).

[lentulusgracchus]

A g[rou]undswell is a distinct possibility, especially if the President takes this opportunity to use the bully pulpit and advocate for conservative judges and justices.

You really don't get it, do you?

From President Bush's POV, this decision is Christmas in June. He is closely aligned with developers and access capitalists and the development lobby -- he personally participated in just such a deal as the New London taking.

This decision expunges, from his POV, the criticism he received in both 2000 and 2004 for his close prior association with such unpopular, cozy arrangments among developers, bagmen, and the Boys Downtown.

He is NOT going to nominate "conservative" judges, strict constructionists, or originalists.

He is going to nominate Rotary Club darlings, Hamiltonian Leviathan-worshippers, apologists for access capitalism, neo-McKinleyites. He is going to nominate Republican Chamber-of-Commerce homers, not "conservatives". Please try to get the picture here!

Remember the corrupt, machine judge in The Verdict, the one who used to be a "bagman for the boys downtown"? He was a Democratic version of what we're going to get on the Supreme Court. Cut and paste my words, engrave them in brass, and put them right in front of your monitor for easy future reference. That is what we are going to get from Manor Bush: go-along, get-along "Rotaripublican" judges.

And the first one is going to be very conspicuously chosen from among the illegal-alien community.

[lentulusgracchus]

Or, as a less eloquent wag put it, "there are country club Republicans, and country music Republicans."

LOL -- yeah, well, I don't care for country music, but that's who I'm sitting with. The beer tastes better.

[mr_hammer]

This was a "puke" decision period! It will erase the value of property more than any housing bubble ever will. What value is private property right now? It has no value anymore. Not when some cheap political hack that has been bought off will run a families out of town and build the next Widget Mart! Where the hell are the "Conservatives" we voted into office?