Eminent Domain

Did anyone else find it slightly unsettling last week when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that "...that local governments have the authority to seize private land and turn the property over to private developers for economic development." Ok, I'm not a lawyer, but I do watch a lot of them on TV, and I have a basic understanding of the Bill of Rights and the U.S. Constitution. Let me see if I can break down my analysis of this ruling into some easy to understand, non-legal type language: WHAAAAAAAAA????? ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME???? You mean to tell me that if my house happens to be in the way of the next GAP or Banana Republic or Heaven forbid, Starbucks, that my local government can just bulldoze my house with no regard for my rights as a property owner? Basically...yes. If the proposed building project will generate a larger tax base for the municipality (and it almost certainly will), the government can now condemn your home to make way for private development. Think about that this 4th of July.