The Associated Press reports that the Chinese Communist regime currently in power sentenced an opponent of land grabs from farmers to five years imprisonment and subjected him to electric shocks from police baton when his family scuffled with police. (See New York Times of March 25, 2008: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/03/25/world/asia/25china.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&ref=world&pagewanted=print
Yang Chunlin gathered 10,000 signatures on an open letter titled "We want human rights, not the Olympics." His crime was "subverting the power of the state." His support principally came from farmers whose land was illegally taken by local governments to hand out to developers.
In China, these land grabs are done without or contrary to law when it is inconvenient to developers and government officials. In these United States we call legal land grabs eminent domain. Libertarians like myself describe these as legalized theft. I am pleased to be "subverting the power of the state" when I campaign against the NY TImes "Time$cam", Atlantic Yards or Columbia University eminent domain schemes.
Free Yang Chunlin now. Contact the Chinese embassy, consulates and tourist offices.
Expose the fallacy of socialism and economic planning. See the works of Ludwig von Mises and Friedrich Hayek.
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(About the author: Richard Cooper is a Libertarian Party (www.lp.org) activist against eminent domain and was the Chair of the Libertarian Party of New York www.lp.org. He ran as a Ron Paul delegate in the February 5th New York primary. He is a Life Member of the International Society for Individual Liberty. www.isil.org)
https://www.groundreport.com/World/Urban-Renewal-Schemes-Seeking-Planning-Consultant–
https://www.groundreport.com/Politics/Presidential-Candidate-Defended-Black-Church-
https://www.groundreport.com/Opinion/Barclays-Bank-Boycott-To-Protest-Eminent-Domain-Ab
https://www.groundreport.com/Politics/Columbia-University-Eminent-Domain-In-Harlem-Conde
https://www.groundreport.com/Politics/A-Childs-Book-of-Eminent-Domain