Some of the Results of the "Kelo" decision

Here are just a few examples taken from the avalanche of property confiscations unleashed by last summer's 5-4 Supreme Court ruling in Kelo v. City of New London:

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• Oakland, Calif.: A week after the Kelo ruling, Oakland city officials used eminent domain to evict John Revelli from the downtown tire shop his family has owned since 1949. Revelli and a neighboring business owner had refused to sell their property to make way for a new housing development. Said Revelli of his fight with the City, "We thought we'd win, but the Supreme Court took away my last chance."</font>
• Boynton Beach, Fla.: Under the threat of eminent domain, the 50-year-old Alex Sims Barber Shop is selling to the City of Boynton Beach to make way for new residences and storefronts. Guarn Sims called the Kelo ruling "the nail in the coffin" that ended his hope of saving the business.</font>
• Baltimore, Md. Baltimore’s redevelopment agency, the Baltimore Development Corp., is exercising eminent domain to acquire more than 2,000 properties in East Baltimore for a biotech park and new residences. BDC Executive Vice President Andrew B. Frank told the Daily Record the Kelo decision "is very good news. It means many of the projects on which we’ve been working for the last several years can continue."</font>
• Boston, Mass.: Two days after the Kelo decision, Boston City Council President Michael Flaherty called on the mayor of Boston to seize South Boston waterfront property from unwilling sellers for a private development project.</font>
• Richmond Heights, Mo.: City officials are taking bids to demolish 200 homes in the Hadley Township Neighborhood, just to turn the land over to a private developer who will build more homes.</font>
• Spring Valley, N.Y.: Less than a week after the Kelo decision, Spring Valley officials asked the New York Supreme Court to authorize the condemnation of 15 downtown properties in an area where a private developer plans to construct residential and retail buildings.</font>
• Ventor City, N.J.: Mayor Tim Kreischer wants to demolish 126 buildings – mom-and-pop shops, $200,000 homes, and apartments – to erect luxury condos, high-end specialty stores, and a parking garage.</font>

Source: WorldNetDaily

 

One of the shocking statistics from the article is that "in America today more than 10,000 properties have been condemned or threatened with condemnation – not for the public good, but for the benefit of private parties."

Karl Marx would be proud, plank #1 of the Communist Manifesto is the abolition of private property.