In one old Bugs Bunny cartoon, a surly construction worker tries to uproot the little grey rabbit from his cozy rabbit hole in order to build a skyscraper on the site. Bugs won’t budge. He fights back to protect “the sanctity of the American home.”

Last week, the sanctity of the American home was dealt a fatal blow by the U.S. Supreme Court.

There’s nothing new about the practice of cities using the power of eminent domain to seize property from its owners for the benefit of other private interests.

Years ago here in Columbus, Ohio, a group of investors called the Capitol South Community Urban Redevelopment Corporation seized and leveled several city blocks south of the Statehouse, displacing or annihilating a number of small businesses, including an interesting old book store that I liked to visit whenever I went downtown. They built a high-end hotel, an outdoor skating rink which has long since been abandoned and demolished, and a new upscale shopping mall.

Rents at the new mall were too upscale for most of the small businesses it displaced. Shopping at the new mall was too upscale for many of the citizens of Columbus, including me. My finances have improved since the mall opened, but there’s not much reason for me to visit the mall downtown. Each time I go there, it seems more of the storefronts are vacant. The upscale stores have moved to newer, fancier malls out in the suburbs. Last time I was there, even the Cinnabon stall — which had long held some unholy power over me — was empty.

More recently, another group of investors called Campus Partners seized several blocks of property along High Street, which runs right past the Ohio State University campus. They evicted the tenants: bars, restaurants, clothing, music and grocery stores, dance clubs, pizza shops — everybody. They tore down every building on both sides of the street and put up lots of chain link fences. The site remained vacant for more than a year because the developers hadn’t yet bothered to line up tenants for the new buildings they planned to put there.

Maybe it’s unfair to suggest that the many OSU riots of recent years had anything to do with the annihilation of so many places where students could go to socialize and let off steam. Or, maybe not.

Construction is currently well underway on the new buildings that will provide upscale student housing and — surprise! — an upscale mall. Everything is supposed to be ready when students return for classes this fall.

As I’ve watched these things happen, I’ve always felt that it was an outrageous abuse of a legitimate government power to take property from one citizen for the private profit of other citizens. I’ve always imagined that some day, the Supreme Court would hear a case about this abuse of power, and would step forward to uphold the sanctity of the American home.

Well, they heard a case. They made a decision.

These words, from an 1879 speech by Chief Joseph of the Nez Perce tribe, seem fitting:

If we ever owned the land we own it still, for we never sold it. In the treaty councils the commissioners have claimed that our country had been sold to the Government. Suppose a white man should come to me and say, “Joseph, I like your horses, and I want to buy them.” I say to him, “No, my horses suit me, I will not sell them.” Then he goes to my neighbor, and says to him: “Joseph has some good horses. I want to buy them, but he refuses to sell.” My neighbor answers, “Pay me the money, and I will sell you Joseph’s horses.” The white man returns to me, and says, “Joseph, I have bought your horses, and you must let me have them.” If we sold our lands to the Government, this is the way they were bought.

Now that’s the law of the land.