In 1980, General Motors’ executives were faced with a dilemma regarding new plant construction in Detroit, Michigan. GM intended to close two of its aging facilities and rebuild new assembly plants at a different site location although still in the Detroit metro area. The only land site matching the construction specifications was a settlement called Poletown, Michigan. This township was home to more than 3,500 residents, all of whom would have to be relocated if construction were approved. The following is an analysis of this dilemma according to the four quadrants of The Executive’s Compass: Liberty, Equality, Community, and Efficiency. Liberty Liberty, as defined by J.S. Mill, “is that of pursing our own good in our own way, so long as we do not attempt to deprive others of theirs, or impede their efforts to obtain it” (p.38-39). GM, without careful decision, stands to violate political and economic liberties by exercising powers of eminent domain in the Poletown, Michigan case of 1980. Eminent domain, the power granted by the government allowing private property to be seized for public use, has been the source of political debate for centuries. Legal cases ruling on different sides of the issue date back more than 167 years. The most recent case to note is Kole v. The City of New London, which was just decided by the U.S. Supreme Court in June 2005. Although the court sided in favor of granting eminent domain, Justice O’Connor quoted the following in her dissent: “Law that takes property from A and gives it to B: It is against all reason and justice, for a people to entrust a Legislature with such powers.” The concept that governmental power should exceed that of the individual right is a cruel violation of political liberty. As stated in The Executive’s Compass, “it degrades the dignity of the individual to make him or her subservient to the will of the state” (p.39). If GM chooses to remove the approximate 3,500 occupants of Poletown from their homes, it would be a brutal infringement on the individual independence of those residents. Economic liberty is an ideal initiated in the late eighteenth century by philosopher Adam Smith (p.40). This domain of liberty pertains to the freedom of the marketplace. It was Smith who stated in The Wealth of Nations that “the consumer is king”, urging also “that government, interfering in the market by granting mercantilist monopolies, abetted this injustice” (p.
The Land Reform Act of 1967 permitted the state of Hawaii to redistribute land by condemning and acquiring private property from landlords (the lessors) in order to sell it to another private owner, in this case, their tenants (the lessees). The Hawaii State Legislature passed the Land Reform Act after discovering that nearly forty-seven percent (47%) of the state was owned by only seventy-two (72) private land owners. That meant that only forty-nine percent of Hawaii was owned by the State and Federal Govermnet.The contested statute gave lessees of single family homes the right to invoke the government's power of eminent domain to purchase the property that they leased, even if the landowner objected. The challengers of the statue (the land owners) claimed that such a condemnation was not a taking for public use because the property, once condemned by the state, was promptly turned over to the lessee (a private ...
Such power could allow cities to favor special interest groups or large corporations. It could be said, the Supreme Court’s decision concludes that there are no restraints a city must consider when taking for economic development and this creates a reasonable potential for abuse. Cities can claim that without eminent domain they cannot accomplish improvements or worthwhile projects within their communities. Many areas in which eminent domain is used are in low income neighborhoods. It is tremendously difficult for individuals in these areas to pay legal fees to fight cities from condemning their properties. Uprooting families, elderly and destroying small businesses is not a means for economic
The concept of eminent domain is the condemnation of property for the public’s well being or good for private use is not the original intention and should not be used in this way. Private corporations and individuals are using the initial purpose was for the acquisition of land for the building of railroads and highways. The use of eminent domain has changed over the years by law, government and legal interpretations. These changes have allowed private interest groups to petition the state and local governments for eminent domain to be declared on property where the owners refuse to sell. Each states position on eminent domain is decided by the legislature and the voters of the state for use by private corporations and individuals. The claim by the corporations and individuals is that there projects is for the good of the public which plays of the condemnation of property and roads of being for the public’s well being. The use of eminent domain for the acquisition of land to build the Keystone Pipeline does not fall within the confines of for the public’s well being.
Eminent Domain is defined as “the power to take private property for public use by a state, municipality, or private person or corporation authorized to exercise functions of public character, following the payment of just compensation to the owner of that property” (Farlex, par. 1). Eminent domain has a long and distinguished legal history, dating back to the Magna Carta. The term “eminent domain” was coined by Hugo Grotius (1583–1645), a Dutch jurist and philosophe, to describe the power of the state over natural property (Dalton, par. 3). This legal process has been used in many nations ostensibly for the “greater good.” Recently, Russia has come onto the world stage as abusing the power of eminent domain in preparation for the 2014 Olympic Games, as has Brazil in regards to the World Cup and upcoming 2016 Olympic Games. They, like many nations, have been accused of not giving just compensation for property taken. World-wide, eminent domain and it abuse of have been increasing as the world’s population and economy change. Author Tit Elingtin writes “The governments have taken advantage of that eminent domain ruling, and you, the media, have failed at protecting citizens” (Elingtin par. 13). This quotation reflects many people’s opinions today. Many believe that governments abuse the power they are given with eminent domain and call on the United Nations to remove the problem.
Eminent domain has long been a controversial power that both the federal and state governments possess. This power gives the right to the government bodies to expropriate private property or land, that it sees as being blighted, and put it to better use for the greater good of the public. For eminent domain to be exercised the seizing of the properties must meet the requirement that they will be for public purpose or public necessity. As long as this requirement is met the federal government cannot be stopped from acquiring private property. Because of this, the eminent domain power has come under tremendous scrutiny for being unfair and unconstitutional. Moreover, people that have fell victim to this law are protesting that they were not adequately compensated for the property that was taken. The law of eminent domain continues to be a point of debate as it has been continuously proven that this law has negative consequences on not only the residents directly affected by the ramifications of the law, but also the communities that are made up of these residences.
In the Humanistic Tradition the author, Gloria Fiero introduces Adam smith as a Scottish moral philosopher, pioneer of political economy, and a key figure in the Scottish Enlightenment. Smith also known as the Father of Political economy, is best known for one of his two classic works An Inquiry into the nature and causes of the Wealth of Nations. Fiero looks at Smith’s work because the division of labor is important. One thing Smith thinks is even more important for creating a wealthy nation, is to interact and have open trade with different countries. Fiero states,“It is necessary, though very slow and gradual, consequence of a certain propensity in human nature which has in view no such extensive utility; the propensity to truck, barter,
Eminent Domain is something that the government put into place so that they can take a person’s land at any time, for almost any reason. Sometimes there are good reasons that the government would want to do this, such as needing to build pipe lines for water or oil and such things like that, but the bigger picture is, is they do not care about the homes or the people living there or the families that they could be hurting while trying to do these things. Iowa or even America was built on being able to prosper off of our own land and live off of our land. I think Eminent domain should be eliminated as a government practice because America was built on being able to own and use our land. This government practice threatens the ability of many citizens to make a living.
“Men desire to have some share in the management of public affairs chiefly on account of the importance which it gives them.” This famous quote by Adam Smith proves what people in the Enlightenment period wanted the most – free market economy and public services. Adam Smith was, in fact, a Scottish economist, who tried to influence the government and convince the ruler to fulfil people’s wishes and needs. Such craving for an “adjustable” trade, led to the first major economic establishment in the Enlightenment period, laissez faire, which banned the government from interfering with private trade. Adam Smith, its huge supporter, managed to get this concept to disseminate safely with various rules and restrictions attached; otherwise, this method might allow too much freedom. The economy during the Renaissance period, transforming especially with Adam Smith’s innovative theories during the Enlightenment, focused on the urge to limit the government’s ability to interfere with the market.
This was practiced when private land was taken to construct roads or other needs for the colonies. Although the development of roads benefited the public, the matter of payment for the seized land wasn’t a regulation. The payment to the private land owners was seen more as a courtesy then requirement. The power to exercise eminent domain by the federal government laid inactive until the case of Kohl v. United States, where the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the government in 1875. Justice William Strong came to the conclusion that “the very nature of sovereignty allowed the taking of land for public use, and also invoked the Takings Clause as supporting the government's right to exercise eminent domain powers” (Newton 1). As the years pass, the powers of eminent domain seem to get interpreted more
Smith's formulation transcends a purely descriptive account of the transformations that shook eighteenth-century Europe. A powerful normative theory about the emancipatory character of market systems lies at the heart of Wealth of Nations. These markets constitute "the system of natural liberty" because they shatter traditional hierarchies, exclusions, and privileges.2 Unlike mercantilism and other alternative mechanisms of economic coordination, markets are based on the spontaneous and free expression of individual preferences. Rather than change, even repress, human nature to accord with an abstract bundle of values, market economies accept the propensities of humankind and are attentive to their character. They recognize and value its inclinations; not only human reason but the full panoply of individual aspirations and needs.3 Thus, for Smith, markets give full expression to individual, economic liberty.
The law of eminent domain has been discussed over many years. The law of eminent domain is allowing the government to seize private property for public use. Many feel as if it should not be allowed. Some reasons, the property belongs to the people they have rights, many people abuse the system, and also many states use it in different ways. All these reasons give us, we the people more reasons why it should not be allowed.
The Power of the Market by Milton and Rose Friedman is about central economic planning and the relationship between the government and its role in the economy. Economic freedom “and essential part of economic freedom is freedom to choose how to use our income: how much to spend on ourselves and on what items; how much to save and in what form; how much to give away and to whom.” “Currently, more than 40 percent of our income is disposed of on our behalf by government at federal, state, and local levels combined.” Is that really freedom? In reality there is no economic freedom, the government controls it. They have their hands in almost everyway possible to make money off of every American. We are nothing but “customers” who work hard to survive while the government has their hands in our pocket every step of the way.
Eminent domain is the legal right to take away private property for public use by either state, or a private person or corporation. It is legally taken away for the purpose to exercise the functions of public characters. Eminent domain gives power to the federal, state and local governments, school district, hospital district, or any other agency to take away private property for the use of the public needs. Eminent domain also gives the power to the government to take away private property if needed to public needs, even without the owner’s full consent. In case of eminent domain, the owner of the property gets payments from the government through compensation. Most of the times, when the government takes away private property, it is for the needs of roads, public schools, or other useful utilities. Eminent domain in the Unites States is also mentioned in the Fifth Amendment of the constitution. The Fifth Amendment states, “ nor shall private property be taken for public use without just the compensation”. The proceeding to take the private property under the eminent domain policy is called condemnation proceeding. Eminent domain is not limited to freeway widening projects, however, it may include projects like working on a new city hall, shopping center, an office building, a bicycle path or a golf course. Nevertheless, Eminent domain not only applies to private property but also personal property. The government has the right to legally take away even a person’s personal property for the use of public needs. There are also two types of using the eminent domain. One way of using the eminent domain is taking just one part of the property from the owner and paying the owner. Second way of using emine...
Dr. George Crowley’s publication, “Adam Smith: Managerial Insights from the Father of Economics,” reaffirms the belief that Adam Smith’s Wealth of Nations continues to remain influential in modern management practices. By allowing economies to be fluid, Dr. Crowley argues societies are better off when businesses and consumers are free to pursue the opportunities in the free market without boundaries or restrictive government interference. Contemporary businesses are more complex and globally intertwined than they were at the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Fundamentally managers face similar challenges as their eighteenth century counterparts, but there are more dynamics taking place in the twenty-first century economy. Academic scholars continue to debate over Adam Smith’s theories, but as Dr. Crowley correctly establishes, Smith’s economic principles provide a blue print in today’s managerial decisions.
Classical Economics is a theory that suggests by leaving the free market alone without human intervention; equilibrium will be obtained. This theory was the first school of thought for economists and one of the major theorists and founders of Classical Economics was Adam Smith. Smith stated, “By pursuing his own interest, he (man) frequently promotes that (good) of the society more effectually than when he really intends to promote it. I (Adam Smith) have never known much good done by those who affected to trade for the public good.”(Patil) Classical Economic theory assumes three basic ideas: Flexible Prices, Shay’s Law, and Savings-Investment equality. Flexible prices in Classical theory suggests prices will rise and fall as needed but is not always true, due to, the interference of government agencies including unions and laws. Smith stated in the Wealth of the Nation (1776), “Civil government, so far it is instituted for the security of property, is in reality instituted for the defense of the rich against the poor, or of those who have some property against those who have none at all.” (Patil) Shay’s Law implies supply creates its own demand and demand is not based on production or supply.