American dream of owning property is withering away After reading the comments made by Long Branch Councilman Brian Unger, I believe clarification is in order, having been present at the real estate development panel at Monmouth University. All the players in the abuse of eminent domain in New Jersey were present and accounted for. But contrary to what was reported on in the local paper, many of the comments made were candid acceptance of the abuse that has been taking place. Peter Reinhart - a vice president for Hovnanian Enterprises and the one-sided opinion moderator for the panel - said he welcomed everyone to "come to the dark side." He spoke candidly about the objective of working through legislative loopholes and attaining the goal of acquiring land for private development. Better yet were the comments of James Aaron of Ansell, Zaro, Grimm & Aaron, legal counsel for the City of Long Branch. Mr. Aaron alluded to the advice he had for his clients (I assume he meant both developers and municipalities). "Do your homework and take the properties early," advised Aaron. I would assume what he means is to assemble as much property as possible to secure an inevitable takeover in the future. Was this a strategic planning seminar? It did not seem like an educational forum. I would love to hear the graduate students' perspective on the evening. There were also pricelessly blatant comments about the rich getting richer and the poor getting screwed. It was quite comforting to know that yes, what I have thought about these people for years was so clearly confirmed. They are wholeheartedly for the best interest of the select few and themselves. It never ceases to amaze me that people can be so callous. I only wish that every resident of Long Branch could have witnessed this in person. Maybe, just maybe then they would open their eyes to the abuses going on in our city. The most offensive comments and also the sweetest of all comments came from James R. Zazzali, esq., retired chief justice of the New Jersey Supreme Court. The rather offensive one was, "Those who can build, build, those who cannot build, criticize." The sweetest comment he made was, "The pendulum has swung out of our (the developers) territory." I took this as a great compliment to Marine Terrace, Ocean Terrace, Seaview Avenue (MTOTSA) and all the eminent domain activists around the country. To phrase it correctly, we have challenged the "dark side" to be born again "into the light," a place where humanitarianism is valued. In conclusion, the people of New Jersey need to insist to their legislators and public officials that their private property rights need to be preserved. The use of eminent domain for private development or for private profit is unconstitutional. The American dream of a "common person" owning your own land is withering away. This issue is preeminent and it should be a concern to all people, not just the subjected. Denise Hoagland MTOTSA Alliance Long Branch