" It's too bad that the county has to feel like they need this land so badly. One would think that they would have had all the land purchased before even starting to build the road. "

" Sounds like the family probably wanted to make a killing off the tax payers. "

" LOL Harry maybe they thought they had Dole land. LOL "

" Not everyone wants to sell their property to individuals or the government. Many of the residents in the area of the new highway have been opposed to it from the very beginning. Refusing to part with something isn't always a ploy for more money. Some of you posters always think you have all the answers when a good deal of you don't even know the circumstances. You just put 2 and 2 together and come up with 5. Find something productive to do with your time instead of belittling people. "

" So what is the point of "owning" property if the government can just come take it when they want? Dont the land owners have to pay rent (taxes) for the right to "own" it? Welcome to the U.S.S.A If you vont sell us ze land, ve vill take ze land! "

" LOKI wrote on Nov 16, 2009 10:21 PM:
" So what is the point of "owning" property if the government can just come take it when they want? Dont the land owners have to pay rent (taxes) for the right to "own" it? Welcome to the U.S.S.A If you vont sell us ze land, ve vill take ze land! "

There is a difference in the government just taking land, and paying you for your land. In some states they not only pay for the land, but help in relocation also. I do believe the government involved must show good reason to need the land, which in this case I do. "

" Whatever happened to our given "Freedom's ? The Declaration of Independence ? When we bought stuff & it was "OURS FOREVER" ? White man first came here, to have "FREEDOM" from all of this ! What Happened To The "USA" ? "No One" should have to SELL Their Home or Land !!!!!! That's what our Soldiers, fight & die for !! So Sadd .... "

" LOKI

They don't take it, they buy it, usually for more than it is worth. If there were no eminent domain, there would be no schools, post offices, railroads, airports and so on, as per the last cause of the 5th amendment of the bill of rights. That's the difference between The USA and the USSR, our government pays for it, their's doesn't. "

" The only problem with eminent domain is that once a person buys thier land they belive it is thiers. But not here in the USA if the goverment city, county, state, or federal want it they will get your land and this is not right or fair at all. In my opinion no matter how much the goverment says then need the land to help the economy there is always another way to accomplish this goal, without taking some ones land away from them.
PS:this from the original Loki "

" You would think they would be happy to have their house demolished and their farm ground paved over for the new "Obama Parkway". LMAO "

" I think this is a private matter between the landowner and government. I do not like eminent domain, but it is necessary. In this case, the family did not recently purchase this ground to sell, to enrich themselves. Our family had some ground that was sold for Rend Lake. Funny, the lake doesn't even cover or is adjacent to this land. For farmers, land isn't usually for sale at any cost, unless they are retired or the children are selling.

I suppose more would be sympathetic if they had learned their house was needed by the government, and it had not been for sale. Because it was a forced sale, the seller would feel it was worth more than market price. How much more is usually where these issues stagnate. We need to let those involved work it out.

I do know eminent domain has been used for bad public works such as the shopping center/harbor out east. "

" Eminant domain has existed in the USA since the USA existed. "

" Since it is the County buying this ground (that means us) I hope the Court does not use the figures from the FutureGen/Dole sale! "

" The use of eminent domain has been abused lately, especially on the east coast. Using it to run off home owners to build things like shopping malls is wrong. Having said that, I don't see this as the same thing. One of the reasons so many of the older highways have so many zigzags in them is because land owners refused to sell their land even though it was for the betterment of the area. This ultimately cost the tax payers more money for the extra materials used in making these roads. Certainly land owners should be fairly compensated for both the land and any other expenses incurred such as moving etc. but it appears to me that this family is trying to get more than the property is worth. Keep in mind it's the tax payers who will be paying for this land. "

" Harry Potter,
In some places country roads do zig-zag because of your reason. But in most cases jogs in the road are caused from section lines not lining up from one township to the next. This happens when we survey land cutting it into square chunks on a round surface. "

" loki813=original loki? Dont think so bub, try again. So, someone please explain to me how FORCING someone to sell something they dont want to for a price the person buying it feels is "fair" isnt the same as stealing it? Is this farmground? Are they going to include any profits this ground would have made for the life of the family who farmed it? To the gestapo, I mean government, sees it as a chunk of land. The people they are trying to steal, I mean force,I mean give a fair price to, are being told, I mean asked to sell their living, their lifes work, their business. Losing land to a farmer takes food off of their childrens table, no matter what the nazis, I mean government thinks is fair. But on the other hand it will be very fertile soil once smothered in all the obamanure. "

" Sunny0911 wrote on Nov 17, 2009 12:35 AM:

" Whatever happened to our given "Freedom's ? The Declaration of Independence ? When we bought stuff & it was "OURS FOREVER" ? White man first came here, to have "FREEDOM" from all of this ! What Happened To The "USA" ? "No One" should have to SELL Their Home or Land !!!!!! That's what our Soldiers, fight & die for !! So Sadd .... "


Eminent Domain is in The 5th Amendment to the Constitution.

I do know eminent domain has been used for bad public works such as the shopping center/harbor out east.

You're right Harry, and that is completely wrong, on a lighter note though, when the Supreme Court heard that case, and ruled in favor of the business owner, the local people got together and decided to open their own business, on the land and house of the Supreme Court Judge whose vote was the deciding one, he later lost his appeal to keep his own house that had been in his family for over a hundred years.


Also Sunny0911

If you are using ANY Microsoft products on your computer, you don't own them. You only have permission to use them. "

" Come on folks. They will be given a fair price plus future loss of use. Eminent Domain isn't taken lightly, but is written as law just for these instances.
I also believe the county might get this land for less than is being offered once the courts have a ruling. Thats a lot more than the Native American's who once farmed this land before us, received! "

" If the final cost includes the cost of the land and future farm income (adjusted for inflation) calculated over the next 100-years or so, I think the FutureGen/Dole sale price may be a bargain. Either way the money will come out of our pocket, as will the expense for this litigation. Can you say, "Ka-ching!" "

" " loki813=original loki? Dont think so bub, try again. bub there is to much to comment on that in itself and yes the original held the nickname of loki since back in the 80's when I was in school and it is the reason why that I had that as a tattoo and so to sum this up (Yes I'm the original). The issue of eminent domain is all to often anymore, is that the goverment deciedes that this land is needed to stimulate economic growth in the area and they use this to take peoples land from them and it is not always a far price paid for the land either. "

" I just love reading the ridiculous comments on the JG-TC on a daily basis. Keep 'em coming. "

" Why all of this alarmed squawking about eminent domain? It's hardly a new concept, folks, since it predates the Revolutionary War by several hundred years. The government has ALWAYS had a right to take your property, so long as they compensated you fairly for it. "

" My grandparents & great grandparents etc. were Cherokee [yes i have proof] We know very well that sometimes the price of land wanted by our Gov. is to steep. i.e. Total Cost = your life/your land & your livelihood. Where do we [the people] draw the line? "

" Where do we [the people] draw the line?

As far as Eminent Domain goes, We the People draw the line in the 5th Amendment of the Constitution, last paragraph. "

" They will not be paid for future use, just the current value based on other recent sales of similar land.

We fought the state for months over a taking several years ago. They refused to pay even reasonable average land price and give nothing for relocation expenses, inconvenience, or lost future earnings.

The Dole (FutureGen) property was NOT an eminant domain taking, it was a negotiated price accepted by the seller. "

" mhs82: You should rethink your statement because you are dead wrong. "