Justice To The Highest Bidder

by Richard A. Cheatham, Press Media Group, LLC

American liberty suffered a serious blow on 23 June 2005. The Supreme Court in Kelo v. City of New London voted five to four against Susette Kelo

Ms. Kelo thought the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution protected her ownership of her home. In part the amendment says, “...nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.” (Emphasis added.) A private developer convinced the New London city government they could generate more taxes by their schemes than Ms. Kelo was paying. The court said that was good enough to kick Ms. Kelo out of her home.

What does “public use” mean to you? A new bridge or government building? To the majority on this Court it doesn’t mean the public would actually get to use the taken property. It simply means the new private owner led the greedy government to believe they’ll get more tax money from them than from the original owner. Justice Thomas reflected, ‘If such “economic development” takings are for a “public use,” any taking is, and the Court has erased the Public Use Clause from our Constitution.’ (Emphasis added.)

“Under the banner of economic development, all private property is now vulnerable to being taken and transferred to another private owner...To reason, as the Court does...is to wash out any distinction between private and public use of property—and thereby effectively to delete the words “for public use” from the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment,” said Justice O’Connor. (Emphasis added.) She added, “Any property may now be taken for the benefit of another private party, but the fallout from this decision will not be random. The beneficiaries are likely to be those citizens with disproportionate influence and power in the political process, including large corporations and development firms.”

Attorney Dana Berliner with the Institute for Justice said, “While most constitutional decisions affect a small number of people, this decision undermines the rights of every American, except the most politically connected. Every home, small business, or church would produce more taxes as a shopping center or office building. And according to the Court, that’s a good enough reason for eminent domain.”

Think your home is your castle, that private property ownership is sacred in the USA, that the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution actually means what it says, that there is “justice” for all and that the weak are protected from the powerful, do you? Think again. This ruling allows government to take your property and give it to anyone they choose as long as those coveting your property can convince the government they’ll generate more tax money than you pay them.

With this ruling, the U. S. Supreme Court has reversed the roles of “servant” and master. Remember that when you see government vehicles with empty platitude “To serve and protect” on them.

©2005 by Richard A. Cheatham. All rights reserved. Mr.Cheatham is a professional speaker/writer whose weekly column, “Drawing Back The Veil” appears weekly in The Lynchburg Ledger. Mr. Cheatham is syndicated through Press Media Group, LLC, 434-332-2845. Contact him through, Living History Assoc., Ltd., at www.LHALtd.com or DrawBackVeil@aol.com.