The Obsolete State

So I haven't blogged in forever. This probably isn't the start of regular blogging again, but it could be. There are a few things that are worth mentioning. First, Norm is hanging up the keyboard. Hopefully he'll continue over the Cost Cutting Caucus Blog.

Another thing that I have not seen mentioned is the Virginia Institute for Public Policy study entitled The Real Story of Eminent Domain in Virginia: The Rise, Fall, and Undetermined Future of Private Property Rights in the Commonwealth. It may very well have been mentioned elsewhere and I fully admit to having my head in the sand lately.

If you have not read the above study I strongly encourage you to do so. There are those out there who claim Virginia does not have a property rights problem, but I am afraid they are mistaken. We do have a problem and it is one that needs to be addressed. I might add that it should be addressed to fix the problem, not to pay lip service to the idea. This is not a left or right issue. There is no right more fundamental than private property rights.

"The chancellor, the late chancellor, was only partly correct. He was obsolete, but so is the state, the entity he worshiped. Any state, any entity, any ideology that fails to recognize the worth, the dignity, the rights of man, that state is obsolete. A case to be filed under "M" for mankind—in the Twilight Zone." - Rod Serling from the Twilight Zone "The Obsolete Man"

The Sci Fi channel had a marathon this weekend of the Twilight Zone. I liked the above quote. Is Virginia on the path towards obsolescence? If the GA fails to protect property owners again this year I am afraid the answer will be "yes".