The Atglen-Susquehanna rail line has been much in the news lately, and the conflict over it throws some light on the question of better government.

The 23-mile abandoned rail line in southern Lancaster County would make, in the eyes of some, a wonderful hiking and biking trail. But in the eyes of many people who live in that area, such a trail would disturb the peacefulness they devoutly cherish.

The new Board of Commissioners has announced that they want a trail, though the County doesn’t own the rail line. Furthermore, the present owner, Norfolk & Southern Railroad, says it has an agreement to hand the line over to the municipalities of the southern end, and has in the past threatened to sue the County if it interfered.

In short, then, the Commissioners are saying to the municipal leaders of Solanco, You may be elected by and responsible to your neighbors, but our view trumps yours and theirs. Give way to our desires.

By inference, they are also saying to the railroad, You may own the line, but we’re willing to fund a court battle to trump your property rights. Give way to our desires.

This is an interesting and frankly troubling situation.

It revolves around the central question of whether the ends justify the means.

The end is a praiseworthy one: more recreation space in another lovely part of a beautiful county. But it’s the means that are troubling, and citizens should ask if it is legitimate for a government, in this case the County, to tell property owners and elected officials, Your rights are subordinate to our desires. Because this in effect is what the County Commissioners are saying.

The Commissioners are announcing that their policy decisions – reached before  any public discussions and carried on behind closed doors – can ipso facto overrule the rights of others.

In the eyes of the Commissioners, this is the easier path to take. It obviates the need to be persuasive, to seek the consent of those who will be most directly affected, and it points directly to them getting what they want. But from the perspective of freedom and a proper ordering of the body politic, this heavy-handedness is very disruptive and can only cause resentment, along with the weakening of property rights and the autonomy of local government.

Thomas Jefferson warned us that “The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield and government to gain ground.”. And this always occurs in the name of a desirable end.

A successful rails-to-trails project can be a desirable end, but it doesn’t justify the government pushing other rightful interests aside.

More on other aspects of this situation later.