Jefferson Review

"Your Liberty is Our Interest"

Home /  Archives / Search / Links / Quotes / Book Reviews / Advertise /Contact us / Subscribe / Calendar

The Sawgrass Rebellion

by Pat Pending

In recent years, we have seen a severe erosion of property rights in the U.S.  Through the endangered species act, various wildlife preservation efforts, zoning, and other initiatives, the government has been taking control of property away from the rightful owners.  The government raises water levels and floods people off of their property.  It cuts off water supplies and starves people off of their property.  It declares areas of private property to be off limits to development or other productive uses, and so forth. 

Most of us, especially those of us living in cities,  probably think that the government has good intentions.  We may think that, even if a few people get hurt, it’s alright, because the overall process benefits society as a whole.  After all, nature and wildlife are like the canary in the coal mines, and, if they are driven out of existence, we humans will be next.  Well, if that’s what you think, then you are dead wrong.  These land grabs are not alright.  They are immoral forms of theft, and they do not benefit wildlife or human beings. 

We humans sustain our lives by controlling property.  We must be able to control property in order to house and feed our families, provide medical care, transportation, education, and so forth.  When we lose the ability to control our property, we lose the ability to control and sustain our lives.  Instead of being free people, we become government subjects, dependent upon the whim of whoever is in power.  Our country’s founders understood that property rights are, in essence, the basic human right, and they took great pains to ensure that this would be a country that protected and defended people’s rights to control their own property.  Respect for the right of people to control their own property is the foundation for all our other rights and freedoms.

In Klamath Basin, Oregon, farmers who hold grant deeds from the U.S. government, granting them land and water rights “in perpetuity” signed by U.S. presidents were prevented from obtaining water for their crops, because some bureaucrat decided that allowing the farmers access to the water might harm some fish.  The potential harm to the fish was tentative, at best, but the harm to the farmers was very real.  Without water, crops withered, animals died, and many farmers were forced to sell out at very low prices, since their farms had been made nearly worthless due to the government’s illegal action.  There can be no doubt that the government’s effort was not intended to protect humans but rather to harm humans.  Legal contracts and deeds were ignored by the government, which took the farmers’ property rights without any due process of law.   

Now, in South Florida, private land owners are being forced off their land by "Everglades Restoration," endangered species protection, open space, Heritage areas, and various other programs.  http://wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=29160  There is a Wildlands project goal to convert Florida from being 90% privately owned to being 90% government owned, and these property takings are steps along the path to carrying out that project.  People who have farmed land for generations are being forced out by the government.  The result will be not only tremendous personal losses but also increased pollution and harm to various animal and plant species, including the adjacent fish and coral reefs.

And these programs are not just in Oregon and Florida.  There is an organized effort under way to achieve government control of virtually all private lands.  As respect for people and their property is allowed to disappear, we are all at risk.  Here in Kentucky, this effort largely goes under the name of “smart growth”.  We have been able to fight back the so-called “smart growth” program so far, but many property owners, such as the people in Floyd’s Fork, are losing their rights through zoning, and the push for “smart growth” and other property theft programs continues. 

It is time for us to speak out.  The farmers at Klamath Basin in Oregon and in South Florida are like the canary in the mine.  If we fail to stand with them, if we allow the government to run roughshod over them, it will just be a matter of time before it will be our turn.

The Florida property owners who are being flooded out by the Everglades Restoration project have started the “Sawgrass Rebellion”, opposing these huge government land grabs.  Farmers from Klamath and property rights advocates from all over the country are forming convoys travelling to Florida to show their support.  One of the convoys is coming through Louisville, and there will be a rally on Oct. 8 at 6:30 PM at St John's Priory, 3014 S. 3rd Street in Louisville to greet the Ohio caravan on its way to Florida.  If you have a chance, go and show your support.

Weather (Louisville) / Mapquest / Search / White Pages / Business Search / CNN / Dictionary / E-card / MSN