Since the letter at the center of this post is by famed economist, I've placed this OP in 'Economics,' but feel that it belongs in Politics
1. DONALD J. BOURDREAUX, "...was an Assistant Professor of Economics at George Mason University from 1985 to 1989. He was an Associate Professor of Legal Studies and Economics at Clemson University from 1992 to 1997, and President of the Foundation for Economic Education from 1997 to 2001. He is now Professor of Economics at George Mason University, where he served as chairman of the Economic Department from 2001 to 2009."
Donald J. Boudreaux - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
2. "Each day, Donald J. Boudreaux, professor of economics at George Mason University, writes a letter to the editor of a major American publication. Often, he writes in response to an absurdity offered up by a columnist or politician, or an eye-catching factoid misleadingly taken out of context."
Hypocrites & Half-Wits by Donald J. Boudreaux
3. This one struck me as particularly important, as it represents an understanding of the Constitution that a certain community organizer fails to understand.
Programming Director, WTOP Radio, Washington, DC. .... Dear Sir or Madam:
Kate Ryan reports that preservationist Mary Rowse, in an effort to prevent a homeowner from tearing down a 100-year-old house in Chevy Chase, is collecting signatures from passersby (Neighborhood organizes against home tear-down, March 10).
Ms. Rowse is collecting cheap currency. She should instead be collecting cash. Only if she buys the house from its current owner someone who pursues his preferences by spending his own money will we have solid evidence that Ms. Rowse and the passersby truly value the preservation of this house more than its current owner values the prospect of replacing it with a newer home.
Sloganeering and signatures are easy and lay no skin in the game. Ms. Rowse and those who claim to share her preferences should put their money where their pens are.
Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
Professor of Economics
March 10, 2014
Pilot Error - The New York Sun
4. The reason that I found the above so very compelling is that it is exactly the position I took about the Ground zero mosque, the Islamic cultural center near the site of the terrorist attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center in my city.
The ownership of property should not be regulated out of the hands of legitimate owners, no matter how many are "offended" by their plans for same.
a. Perhaps some know that before it became life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness in our Declaration of Independence, John Locke wrote that man has a right to life, liberty, and property. Property Rights Have Personal Parallels - Forbes
5. Further....it is exactly the same problem that exists when eco-fascists decide to "save" some 'endangered' fish or other.
a. Under United States law the principal limitations on whether and the extent to which the State may interfere with property rights are set by the Constitution. The "Takings" clause requires that the government (whether state or federalfor the 14th Amendment's due process clause imposes the 5th Amendment's takings clause on state governments) may take private property only for a public purpose, after exercising due process of law, and upon making "just compensation." Property - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
b. That said, the Eco-Fascists have managed the sequestration of productive land unmatched since the age of kings. Over 30% of the American land base lies under no-use or limited-use restrictions .almost 700 million acres. The Bureau of Land Management and the Department of the Interior are targeting the confiscation of another 213 million acres, bringing the count to nearly half of the continent! http://r-calfusa.com/Trade/property_rights/100900BLMLeakedMemo.pdf
1. DONALD J. BOURDREAUX, "...was an Assistant Professor of Economics at George Mason University from 1985 to 1989. He was an Associate Professor of Legal Studies and Economics at Clemson University from 1992 to 1997, and President of the Foundation for Economic Education from 1997 to 2001. He is now Professor of Economics at George Mason University, where he served as chairman of the Economic Department from 2001 to 2009."
Donald J. Boudreaux - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
2. "Each day, Donald J. Boudreaux, professor of economics at George Mason University, writes a letter to the editor of a major American publication. Often, he writes in response to an absurdity offered up by a columnist or politician, or an eye-catching factoid misleadingly taken out of context."
Hypocrites & Half-Wits by Donald J. Boudreaux
3. This one struck me as particularly important, as it represents an understanding of the Constitution that a certain community organizer fails to understand.
Programming Director, WTOP Radio, Washington, DC. .... Dear Sir or Madam:
Kate Ryan reports that preservationist Mary Rowse, in an effort to prevent a homeowner from tearing down a 100-year-old house in Chevy Chase, is collecting signatures from passersby (Neighborhood organizes against home tear-down, March 10).
Ms. Rowse is collecting cheap currency. She should instead be collecting cash. Only if she buys the house from its current owner someone who pursues his preferences by spending his own money will we have solid evidence that Ms. Rowse and the passersby truly value the preservation of this house more than its current owner values the prospect of replacing it with a newer home.
Sloganeering and signatures are easy and lay no skin in the game. Ms. Rowse and those who claim to share her preferences should put their money where their pens are.
Sincerely,
Donald J. Boudreaux
Professor of Economics
March 10, 2014
Pilot Error - The New York Sun
4. The reason that I found the above so very compelling is that it is exactly the position I took about the Ground zero mosque, the Islamic cultural center near the site of the terrorist attacks that destroyed the World Trade Center in my city.
The ownership of property should not be regulated out of the hands of legitimate owners, no matter how many are "offended" by their plans for same.
a. Perhaps some know that before it became life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness in our Declaration of Independence, John Locke wrote that man has a right to life, liberty, and property. Property Rights Have Personal Parallels - Forbes
5. Further....it is exactly the same problem that exists when eco-fascists decide to "save" some 'endangered' fish or other.
a. Under United States law the principal limitations on whether and the extent to which the State may interfere with property rights are set by the Constitution. The "Takings" clause requires that the government (whether state or federalfor the 14th Amendment's due process clause imposes the 5th Amendment's takings clause on state governments) may take private property only for a public purpose, after exercising due process of law, and upon making "just compensation." Property - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
b. That said, the Eco-Fascists have managed the sequestration of productive land unmatched since the age of kings. Over 30% of the American land base lies under no-use or limited-use restrictions .almost 700 million acres. The Bureau of Land Management and the Department of the Interior are targeting the confiscation of another 213 million acres, bringing the count to nearly half of the continent! http://r-calfusa.com/Trade/property_rights/100900BLMLeakedMemo.pdf
