The Supreme Court this week voted on the side of big business and against the interest of the American taxpayer.
WASHINGTON - Cities may bulldoze people's homes to make way for shopping malls or other private development, a divided Supreme Court ruled Thursday, giving local governments broad power to seize private property to generate tax revenue.In a scathing dissent, Justice Sandra Day O'Connor said the decision bowed to the rich and powerful at the expense of middle-class Americans.
The 5-4 decision means that homeowners will have more limited rights. Still, legal experts said they didn't expect a rush to claim homes.
"The message of the case to cities is yes, you can use eminent domain, but you better be careful and conduct hearings," said Thomas Merrill, a Columbia law professor specializing in property rights.
Yeah, because restraint's worked so well in the past. What evil bastards would dare encroach on the private property of citizens only to pad the pockets of the already filthy rich?
"I think when it is all said and done, I will have made more money than I ever dreamed I would make," Bush told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. And he's making millions because the Ballpark at Arlington is a gigantic, taxpayer-supported, cash machine. Last year, Financial World magazine named the Ballpark the most profitable venue in baseball. Hicks didn't buy the Rangers because he wants Juan González's autograph. He bought them because he can make a lot of money at the stadium that George W. Bush takes credit for building.In 1993, while walking through the stadium, Bush told the Houston Chronicle, "When all those people in Austin say, 'He ain't never done anything,' well, this is it." But Bush would have never gotten the
stadium deal off the ground if the city of Arlington had not agreed to use its power of eminent domain to seize the property that belonged to the Mathes family. And evidence presented in the Mathes lawsuit suggests that the Rangers' owners --
Well, glory be... the one thing Bush was successful at, was stealing property?
Next up, the Texas Legislature and Rick Perry will call a special session to expedite the TTC and steal Texas property for Spanish developers.
I am still trying to figure out how the Court justified this, constitutionally and all.
Posted by: C.b. at June 24, 2005 07:32 AM