Mugged by the State: Outrageous Government Assaults on Ordinary People and Their Property

You don't seem to hear the phrase "It's a free country" much anymore. And no wonder. It isn't! As you would expect from a Reader's Digest writer, Fitzgerald does a succinct job of detailing one government horror after another. Americans are under siege by politicians and their agents at every level, and any attempt at justice is expensive and unpredictable since the courts are no more consistent in their defense of liberty than any other branch of government. It doesn't matter whether the politicians in charge are Republican or Democrat, conservative or liberal, government grows and liberty shrinks under all regimes. Most sadly, few Americans seem to care about the erosions of freedom, so long as they are not themselves under attack. They support the tragedy of drug prohibition, and the thefts which emminent domain, zoning, and environmental regulations facilitate. Fitzgerald notes how commonplace it is for a company like Costco to demand that cities take property from landowners and give them to the companies to build new club locations. The author, like James Bovard, is a good chronicler of the end of freedom in America.

You could be "Mugged by the War on Drugs" because the government wants to raise revenue. Fitzgerald quotes "Steven Kessler, who once headed the district attorney's asset forfeiture unit in the Bronx, New York. `The focus is no longer on combating crime. It's on fundraising.'" You could be "Mugged by Eminent Domain" because the government wants to take your property and give it to someone else. Fitzgerald explains their reasoning: "under the banner of `redevelopment,' many government officials now interpret public good to mean the advancement of any business interest that creates more jobs and tax revenue than the business, home, or neighborhood that it replaces." The author devotes his largest chapter to people "Mugged for the Environment." The remaining chapters cover government incursions into people's livelihoods in order to help the handicapped, maintain safe workplaces, and protect consumers. Victims lose property, years of their lives, and faith in justice. The bad guys are government officials enforcing unreasonable regulations either because they are drunk with power or the tools of third parties seeking to transfer property to themselves. The good guys are victims who fight to keep their property even if they only score Pyrric victories after lengthy and expensive legal battles. Good guys also include legal groups such as the Institute for Justice. Fitzgerald rejects the criticism that these tales are isolated. He claims that "It Could Happen to You." "I believe", he writes, "a strong case can be made that these anecdotes show the emergence of clear and disturbing patterns, and from these patterns we can discern systemic problems and abuses that require legislative remedies." In conclusion he outlines proposals for reform. Exercise your property rights to buy this book and prepare to be shocked.

Mugged by the State, by Randall Fitzgerald, is a series of succinct descriptions of cases in which government agencies destroyed small businesses and seized homes, cars, and other property from everyday people. In each case where the victim did break the law, it was a minor, technical violation that should not have triggered such a draconian reaction. Each vignette in Mugged by the State is based on a true story that Fitzgerald wrote for Readers Digest. Consider the case of Fred and Nancy Cline. They established one of the last remaining family farms in the country, only to have the Army Corps of Engineers issue a cease and desist order threatening them with ongoing fines of $25,000 a day for each day they were in violation of one of its wetlands regulations, plus one year in prison. After a second cease and desist order and ruinous legal expenses, the Army Corps of Engineers demanded they restore the entire farm to its preagricultural state. To intimidate the Clines, the Corps of Engineers began flying black helicopters over the property, only a very short distance from the ground. It's clear that a person doesn't own what he doesn't control. When government at any level, Federal, state or local, denies a property owner the right to control what belongs to him, the government has seized ownership. Had they not received help from an unexpected source, the government would own the Clines' farm. The Clines talked to a former chief of the Army Corps of Engineers' regulatory division who had played a major role in writing the portion of the Clean Water Act the Corps and DOJ accused the Clines of violating. The former chief of the regulatory division said everything the Clines did was legal. DOJ and the Army ultimately dropped the matter. Sadly, not everyone in the Clines' position is so fortunate. Just as Federal and state agencies perform regulatory takings, zoning and other local regulations can be used to deny people ownership of land they own and pay taxes on. If you've been fortunate enough to avoid problems with the zoning board, it may come as a surprise to you that the Hood River Co., Oregon planning department prevented Tom and Doris Dodd from building their retirement home on land they had purchased for $33,000; zoning had lowered its value to $700. (The Dodds lost their lawsuit.) Some may pass off the instances Fitzgerald documents as isolated anecdotes, but the reality is that many government officials really do face incentives to behave in the same fashion that led to the "muggings" recounted in Mugged by the State. Most "muggings" receive very little attention, and only the more fortunate victims get their property back. And although Fitzgerald doesn't mention it every time, the victim's Constitutional rights to just compensation (5th Amendment), due process (5th or 14th), or freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures (4th) were violated in most of the anecdotes included in the book. An entire chapter of the

This book reports accurate accounts of government legislation directly aimed at releasing individuals of their property and rights for their own financial welfare, as they see fit. I am appauled at the poor ethics of our government officials! It appears that it's fine to release individuals of their livelihoods as long as "theirs" isn't threatened. Time and time again, this book gives exact examples of the government running scared only when it seems it might cost them their jobs. I find this greedy behavior sickening! Thanks for opening my eyes.

This book is stunning. First of all, it is both chilling and brilliant, such as when the author describes interviewing one of the book's subjects when suddenly, like right out of a movie--a ubiquitous black helicopter juts over the horizon and approaches menacingly until it hovers right outside the window! There are surpises galore in this masterpiece of what should alarm and awaken Americans to a government that can at times be arrogant and intimidating. In short, this book is a MUST-READ and should be included in college American history and poli-sci courses. Also, you will appreciate that this is not shoddy, conspiracy-ridden material, but the real thing. MUGGED BY THE STATE author Randall Fitzgerald is an experienced journalist whose cases here have been thoroughly fact-checked. I also liked how the self-help portion of the book is invaluable because it offers you solid how-to guidance and resources should you be "mugged by the state." An awesome book!