We've all heard about the problem posed by "takings," when the government passes regulations that prevent property owners from developing their land. Well, the NYT has a piece about efforts by Maine residents to prevent a property owner from doing what she wants with her land, but it never discusses it in the context of takings. That is because the property owner is an environmentalist who wants to turn the land that she has bought into a park and exclude uses like logging and snowmobiling.
Of course the link between "takings" and environmental regulation is nonesense. The government takes actions all the time that raise or lower the value of property. Adults understand these risks when they buy property. Unfortunately, the media has chosen to treat the "anti-takings" crew as a serious property rights movement, instead of just a new approach to undermining environmental regulation.
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