You will be pleased to know ( well, maybe not, but for the sake of argument
)
that on this issue I come down squarely on the Libertarian side. Now and
then, anyway,
I indulge one of my passions, namely, micronations. This is a type of
geofiction.
With micronations, though, it isn't imaginary countries on distant planets
you
get to design all by yourself ( and if the government is democratic or a
constitutional
monarchy or a customized theocracy in which faith in UFOs is the state
religion,
that is your call ) . Instead you divvy up parcels of Earth real estate at
your discretion.
For example, I myself, on behalf of a so far secret micronation, claim
about
25 % of the surface of Antarctica, plus several Pacific islands no-one is
using anyway,
plus various counties across the USA, as parts of my sovereign Grand Duchy.
This includes the eastern half of Lane County, here in Oregon, which is the
capital of the Duchy and is global redoubts.
Some micronation people, though, take this further. Like Sealand, referred
to in
the article --an actual place, on a previously unclaimed and previously
derelict
oil rig platform in the North Sea. This is also a refuge for pirate radio.
Technically it still
is British but Her Majesty's gvt has had no inclination to do anything at
all
with the platform and so it has become a new "state" in Europe.
A few folks have created scams based on the idea, and have done such things
as selling, for real money, condos on Caribbean islands that don't exist,
or that
may well exist, but as undeveloped specks of land in the middle of nowhere.
True , these scams do not interest me, but otherwise, heck, why not ?
Next time you want to visit Antarctica, though, you'll need to first obtain
a passport from my Grand Duchy.
Details upon request.
Since you are a friend there will be no fee. All non-friends will need to
shell out $ 50.
To get there you may wish to fly in the comfort of the imaginary airline
of the Duchy. Or perchance, go there in style in one of the Duchy's
imaginary cruise ships, really a splendid experience,
never to be forgotten.
signed :
Baron von Wilhelm
--on behalf of all of the subjects of the secret Duchy
message dated 9/3/2011 9:04:44 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time,
[email protected] writes:
* _reason.org_ (http://reason.org/)
_Libertarians Hunt Humans—And Other Tales_
(http://reason.com/archives/2011/09/02/libertarians-hunt-humansmdasha)
The latest hysterical response to libertarian ideas
_David Harsanyi_ (http://reason.com/people/david-harsanyi) | September 2,
2011
With the electorate getting more comfortable with libertarian ideas, a
Maginot Line of hackery is being built to keep the barbarians out.
The latest is over at _Reuters_
(http://blogs.reuters.com/great-debate/2011/09/01/do-libertarians-like-peter-thiel-really-want-to-live-in-america/)
,
where Sally Kohn writes one of the silliest pieces on the topic I’ve ever
read. Using Peter Thiel’s seasteading efforts (”sovereign nations built on
oil-rig-type platforms anchored in international waters”) as her touch-point
she expounds on this “sinister” and “un-American” ideology lurking deep
in the dark souls of otherwise “tame-seeming libertarians.”
Don’t like the idea of tax dollars paying for public schools or highway
construction or Medicare—or don’t like the idea of taxes at all? The brave
new floating world offers just the solution. And if the self-appointed
creators wish it, there would be no restrictions on guns or automatic weapons.
Or, for that matter, no prohibition against murder. Pesky “moral suasion”!
Automatic weapons and murder for all! (_The Most Dangerous Game_
(http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0780022114/reasonmagazineA/) starring
Peter
Thiel as Zaroff.) Was she joking? I can’t tell.
No, I don’t “like” the idea forcing citizens to join a Washington-run
health care program or forcing parents to pay for crappy school that fail
their kids year after year. But I’ve yet to meet a libertarian who opposes
restrictions on homicide. Perhaps I don’t get out often enough. I always knew
there were many schools of libertarian thought, all of them having something
to do with an underlying belief that an individual ought to have the
freedom to live his/her life as he/she likes as long he/she respects the
individual rights of other hes/shes. Critics always seem to ignore the latter
half
of the idea. Imaginary anarchy, racism, and hedonism ensue.
Kohn also informs us that libertarians don’t want roads and would like to
abolish FEMA and the TSA—which God gave us in 1979 and 2002, respectively—
because if government isn’t helping no one is. (I suspect the folks at the
_Reason Foundatio_ (http://reason.org/areas/topic/311.html) n have probably
done more thinking about transportation today than Kohn has in her entire
life.)
She tells us that anti-corporate he-devils used to avoid regulation—even
the law—for personal gain but today he-devils want to start new countries
even as they look to destroy old ones. Never mind, that the modern-day Robber
Baron has a better chance enriching himself by buying into government. As
long as it’s environmental friendly cronyism this is to be admired.
There are many substantive arguments available in this debate, but it seems
that the effort is to either misinform or scare the hell out of people.
Do libertarians like Peter Thiel really want to live in America? (Evidently
he doesn’t? Right?) I suppose you’d have to ask him. I’m only a mushy
small “l” classical liberal type and I like living in America. But if America
becomes a place where government has its coercive hands in every aspect of
life and business—the kind of America that Kohn envisions—then
seasteading is going to look mighty attractive.
David Harsanyi is a columnist at The Blaze. Follow him on Twitter
@davidharsanyi.
--
"Anyone who thinks he has a better idea of what's good for people than
people do is a swine."--P. J. O’Rourke
--
Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community
<[email protected]>
Google Group: _http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism_
(http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism)
Radical Centrism website and blog: _http://RadicalCentrism.org_
(http://radicalcentrism.org/)
--
Centroids: The Center of the Radical Centrist Community
<[email protected]>
Google Group: http://groups.google.com/group/RadicalCentrism
Radical Centrism website and blog: http://RadicalCentrism.org
