Retired Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens talks about his "most unpopular opinion" — Kelo v. New London.

The WSJ reports:

"I had people at a bridge game stop me and ask, 'How could you have written that opinion? We thought you were a good judge, but we learned otherwise,'" [Justice Stevens] said. "But you can't explain the whole law of eminent domain to your bridge opponents."

He particularly criticized the logic of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.... The O'Connor dissent "took the position that public use is required in all cases except cases where they were remedying harm, getting rid of a nuisance or, in the case of the Hawaiians, correcting an injustice," Justice Stevens said in the interview. But in the 1954 case, "the irony of it is that the department store was in perfect condition," he said. "Their distinction was very unpersuasive."

"The Occupy Wall Street protesters are confronting a classic Manhattan problem: lots of people, not a lot of space."

"So they're solving it in classic Manhattan fashion: arguing about it, making deals and building upward."

The move toward larger tents has some protesters worried. They prefer the privacy of individual dwellings.

"I don't mind them in and of themselves, but if they begin moving up by claiming eminent domain, it would be hypocritical and ironic," said Brian Thomas, a 32-year-old from Maine. "[Larger tents] are sturdy and more handy, but I think it's going to take away people's personal space and that will exacerbate the already rising level of tension."

The individual and the group.

ADDED: This feels like verse 2 of "Like a Rolling Stone":

You’ve gone to the finest school all right, Miss Lonely
But you know you only used to get juiced in it
And nobody has ever taught you how to live on the street
And now you find out you’re gonna have to get used to it
You said you’d never compromise
With the mystery tramp, but now you realize
He’s not selling any alibis
As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
And ask him do you want to make a deal?

The finest-school kids encounter the mystery tramp and the deal is a real estate deal.

"Connecticut Supreme Court Justice Apologizes to Susette Kelo for his Vote to Uphold the Condemnation of Her Home..."

"... But then Lets Himself off the Hook Too Easily."

ADDED: The old Kelo controversy reminds me of one of the most-overused Wisconsin protest chants: "Whose house? OUR HOUSE!"



(LOL. I never noticed that video before. Or if I did, I'd managed to blot out the memory. Smell the cheeseball entitlement.)

"[Y]our property belongs to you..."

"... until somebody with more clout wants it for something else, be it a 'vision,' or a moneymaking scheme."