Eminent Domain

Hey, it's only been two months since I posted last. Gimme a break...a lot's been going on. Since y'all don't like to part with money and fund my adventures here, I had to get a real job. It's stressful and leaves me not really wanting to write much.

But, I couldn't pass this one up.

From the Pittsburgh, PA news: U.S. Government Backs Off. Yeah, don't we wish that was true. Seems the Government wants to use eminent domain to seize land for a memorial for Flight 93. That's a great idea! Build a memorial to commemorate the 40 men and women who gave their lives to keep the terrorists from accomplishing their plans on that morning in September of 2001.

It's a 2,200 acre memorial.

Lemme repeat that: it's a 2,200 acre memorial.

The Twin Towers took up only 2 acres of the 16 acre complex. So, what, exactly, are we commemorating with a 2,200 acre memorial? The acreage the government is wanting to seize is currently farm land. Ya know, where people grow things for other people to eat. Like vegetables. And cows. But, we want to take that land and make it a National Park!

Capitalism. Gotta love it.

But, RA! It's a memorial! Indeed! But National Parks ain't free. They charge admission. When was the last time you paid to walk up to the Vietnam War Memorial or the Iwo Jima memorial or the World War II memorial? When was the last time you were charged a fee to visit the battlefield in Gettysburg or the Lincoln Memorial?

I'm sorry, I'm failing to see how a 2,200 acre National Park in the middle of Nowheresville, PA is going to help us remember the 40 souls on Flight 93. "But, they said they'd give the landowners fair market value for the land!" Big whoop. If they open that National Park, they'll make more money in a year than what they paid the landowners. Fair market value my left eye tooth!

The governement really needs to cut the crap and figure out why we're in debt and having to rely on other countries for our goods. Could it be...we like seizing farm land to build highways or National Parks or other things? Chances are likely YES. Eminent Domain reaks of communism. Oh, shhh! We can't use that word because communism is dead! Okay, so socialism...or do you prefer fascism? Whatever ism you want add, it sure ain't deomocracy-within-a-republic-ism.

The founding fathers are probably rolling so fast in their graves that they're causing those earthquakes in California.