Verbal Gymnastics
Writing in the Washington Times, Jacob Scullum rips Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson for his subterfuge in front of a Senate subcommittee looking into the impact of Kelo v. New London. Here’s part of what Mr. Peterson said:
“Cities use eminent domain most often as a negotiating tool with property owners,” explained Mr. Peterson, speaking for the National League of Cities. “Just having the tool available makes it possible to negotiate with landowners.”
Here’s Mr. Scullum’s response:
Sure it does, in the same way having a gun available makes it possible for a bank robber to negotiate with a bank teller.
Here’s more of Peterson’s subterfuge:
Mr. Peterson asserts “a natural tension…between individual rights and community needs” that wise men like him must resolve to “achieve a greater public good that benefits the entire community.”
Until the 5 liberal pinheads of the SCOTUS created a right to steal peoples’ dreams, there wasn’t a “natural tension”. This is nothing more than liberals saying that a city’s desire to increase their city’s tax base takes precedence over a person’s private property rights.
This goes against the foundation of this country. The last I looked, the Preamble to the Constitution started with “We, the People”, not “We, the city government”. Kelo turns that basic premise on its head. I don’t care about the “greater good” when it collides with “We, the People”. An individual’s private rights should always take precedence over the collectivist “greater good”.
Cross-post at LetFreedomRing