Liberty

Property Rights are one of the fundamental building blocks of our great country.  Without the right to own property there can be no true liberty.  If the City of Idaho Falls and Idaho Falls Power attempt to use eminent domain to strip tax-paying property owners of their land and possessions in order to build an unnecessary and redundant power line, (with other routing options available to them), we can no longer trust that the governed possess true liberty.  I would be forced to conclude that government has taken the right of liberty as its own possession, only to be granted to individuals in the event that it does not impede the selfish desires of government.

The role of government is to secure liberty.  With regards to the North Loop Project the City of Idaho Falls and IFP are threatening to destroy liberty, not secure it.  Before it became “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” John Locke wrote that man has a right to “life, liberty, and property.”  Our constitution twice lists “life, liberty, and property” without making any distinction between the three. 

I understand the importance of eminent domain.  But there is no way the city of Idaho Falls should have any right to the property of another for the sake of the North Loop project.  The electricity needs of Idaho Falls can be met without trampling the liberties of its rural neighbors.

Can I drive across my neighbor’s lawn because it would save me time and money on my way to work?  Then why should the city and IFP, which has no rights but those given to it by the governed, trample and destroy our land in order to save themselves a little bit of time and expense?