DMala |
Sleep is overrated
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Reged: 05/09/05
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Posts: 3989
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Loc: Waltham, MA
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Re: Freedom in the 50 States
01/30/11 08:51 AM
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> They were beat > up, run down, should-have-been-condemned type houses and the prices that they were > apparently offered were well above their fair market value.
My problem in cases like this is that people are offered what the fair market value was *before* a multimillion dollar development project needed their property. This, by definition, raises the value of the property. If the developer offered enough money, I guarantee you that even the most stubborn of holdouts would eventually sell. It's just cheaper to get the politicians to force them out and pay them "market value" under the guise of improving the area.
I have no doubt that a lot of these projects do improve bad areas. I still don't think it justifies using government authority to take private property for private, for-profit development. Even if it's done with good intentions, it's a violation of a person's rights, and the potential for abuse is *massive*.
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