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September 8, 2008
Your Chance to Vote on Eminent Domain Abuse
Noticing New York nominated "Eminent Domain Abuse" as a topic for the Brian Lehrer Show's “Thirty Issues In Thirty Days” series for WNYC.
The topic is as relevant as any, since eminent domain is being used for private projects all over the city and polls show that Americans are unanimously opposed to the practice.
One of the topics now nominated, courtesy of yours truly here at Noticing New York, is the subject of eminent domain abuse.
So, if you are interested in what will surely be a very well-produced event get ready to go to the Brian Lehrer show site to vote for its discussion.
The nomination (currently # 102 submitted September 04, 2008 at10:56AM) says:
Topic: Eminent Domain Abuse
To which national party do we go to address this issue? According to polls up to 90% of Americans disagree with the Kelo decision but protections are not in place in New York, on the federal level or many other places. Abuse usually involves big corporations trampling on individual rights in pursuit of profit, the kind of thing for which we often instinctively blame Republicans but Democrats seem to have largely ceded this emotional issue to Libertarian and Republican candidates and, ironically, it is the conservative Republican judicial appointees who have been willing to uphold individual constitutional rights- The same justices who might overturn Roe v. Wade. It is a federal as well as a state issue because federal funding could require no abuse. Ratner is spending hundreds of millions lobbying against this.
NoLandGrab: If any other readers are planning on nominating Eminent Domain, note in the submission guidelines that descriptions are supposed to be 30 words or less.
MORE ABUSE
And speaking about Eminent Domain Abuse, Noticing New York also attended and submitted testimony at the Empire State Development Corporation's public hearing on the Columbia University land grab.
Click here for a report on the hearing and a copy of the testimony.
Posted by lumi at September 8, 2008 5:29 AM