Thu, 23 Jun 2005

Supreme Court Rules Cities May Seize Homes

In the humble opinion of this writer, we are now ruled officially by an oligarchy. Note Justice O'Connor's stinging dissent:

"Any property may now be taken for the benefit of another private party, but the fallout from this decision will not be random," O'Connor wrote. "The beneficiaries are likely to be those citizens with disproportionate influence and power in the political process, including large corporations and development firms."

She was joined in her dissent by Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, as well as Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. Note that these are the "conservative" members of the court - the "liberals" all voted to allow this abomination.

I would take this opportunity to remind the Court (and the various governments that will be more inclined to steal following this decision) of a quip from James Baldwin that "The most dangerous creation of any society is that man who has nothing to lose." And you've just created a whole bunch of'em.

AP - The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that local governments may seize people's homes and businesses — even against their will — for private economic development.

(link) [Yahoo! News: Top Stories]

Update: Here is a followup from a corporate perspective, via CNN.

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