Venom and Bile

[WTMHouston]

The condemnation case is interesting not so much for its result but for who came down on which side. The conservative wing of the court, which usually gives great deference to the reasonableness of government choices with respect to reasons for policy (especially in the criminal law arena), here chose to give little to no deference to government policy choices.

Public purpose, like reasonableness, is in the eyes of the beholder. Traditionally, many true conservatives have taken a narrow view of government interference with private property rights and have been unwilling to cede that aspect of private life to the government. Many liberals on the other hand have been willing to let government have its way when it was advancing some social purpose that they found to be a greater need or goal. As I have said before, however, these days the only real difference between most "conservatives" and most "liberals" is what aspect of our life they want government to have control over.

I do not profess to have significant expertise in the area of takings, but like many others areas of the law, I tend to come down on the side of "when in doubt, keep the government out."