Remember Kelo v. City of New London?

If not, read Wikipedia, or better yet, read the actual decision.

Done? Lovely. Now read this. The barbs and sarcasm contained in the following excerpt are, of course, entirely justified:

Eventually, something will probably get built on the site. But in the meantime, it will have lain empty for many years, probably at least a decade in all. In addition to the financial and emotional costs imposed on the people who lost their homes, this hiatus ensures that the takings will be a net loss when it comes to promoting development for the city as well. It is actually quite common for economic development takings to end up destroying more development than they create.

Fortunately, the eight year wait was not a total loss. 
Feral cats have been making use of the land where Susette Kelo’s house once stood. But I suspect that the city could have built an even better home for the feral cats for a lot less than $80 million, and without condemning any private property.

 

Corporations and Other Business Entities Should Be Treated Like Natural Persons

Senators Jon Tester and Patty Murray are out to deprive corporations and corporate entities of constitutional rights. Eugene Volokh explains why this is an absolutely terrible idea. From his conclusion, discussing what would happen if the Tester-Murray amendment is adopted:

. . . goodbye, First Amendment protection for the New York Times, CNN, the ACLU, the NRA, and the Catholic Church. Goodbye, any right to just compensation when a corporation’s property is taken — whether the corporation is a large business or a small mom-and-pop company. Goodbye, any rights to due process when a corporation’s property is seized. Goodbye, any protection for corporations (again, even small family-run businesses) from unreasonable searches and seizures, or excessive fines. That’s what Senators Tester and Murphy’s amendment calls for.

Read the whole thing to see why the conclusion is entirely justified. And remember: Those who call for the curbing of corporate rights and the rights of other business entities as a way of enhancing the rights of natural persons will only end up trampling on the rights of both corporations/business entities and natural persons.