TALLAHASSEE — Riviera Beach’s billion-dollar waterfront redevelopment project took a beating Tuesday during a meeting of a House committee that is studying ways to limit the use of eminent domain in Florida…
Riviera Beach already has been in the national spotlight since the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in June that the city of New London, Conn., could take homes along the city’s waterfront for development by a private developer.
City residents have been featured on national news programs as the next possible example of a city taking private land solely for “economic development.” …
“That’s exactly what they’re doing down there,” said Rice, who has proposed a constitutional amendment that would severely restrict eminent domain powers. “You’ve got your mayor down there in Riviera Beach on national TV admitting that they’re taking those parcels of land to increase the tax value. He said it.”
America’s founding principles are “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” This is derived from John Locke’s theories, which included property rights in place of the generic “happiness.” The Constitution sets out clear purposes for the government to exercise eminent domain: the Fifth Amendment says “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.”
This implies that the government has the power to take your property, but that there are rules that apply to such taking. In Kelo vs New London, the Supreme Court disregarded over two hundred years of tradition, the clear reading of the Constitution, and common sense, when they said that “public use” could mean “public purpose,” that purpose being, increased tax revenues for the government.
This is tyranny. This is akin to Robert Mugabe throwing landowners off their property in Nigeria, except without the violent deaths.
The only entities which support Eminent Domain takings in Florida are the two “Leagues”(cities and counties).Everytime they refer to Eminent Domain as a “TOOL” I feel like throwing up. Is like they ever build anything.Actualy they a using it as a WEAPON against their citizens to steal the land from Peter and give it to Paul.We need more people like
Everett Rice in the goverment and phonies like Greenstein and Seiler should be sent to Leningrad.
Comment by Florentin Vasiliu — February 13, 2006 @ 10:34 pm |