The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

The Seasteading Concept Is All Fun And Games Until Reality Intrudes

Posted on | August 17, 2011 | 17 Comments

by Smitty (via Althouse)

The idea is for these countries to start from scratch–free from the laws, regulations, and moral codes of any existing place.

Ocean Engineering ain’t beanbag, but it can be done. The only way this has much of a chance is if it goes Swiss, and does a lot of very discreet wealth handling for people who need such services. Also, it has to support port calls from pretty much every navy afloat.

Why? Security is the chief concern. Past natural disasters, the main predator for this idea will be other countries which are envious of the prosperity. Are you a petty megalomaniac who was snubbed by a Seasteading leader? Get yourself a diesel-electric boat and slide a torpedo into it. Cheap, anonymous retribution. Even the mere threat of such will trigger the clanging sound of sphincters slamming shut.

Category: Uncategorized

Comments

17 Responses to “The Seasteading Concept Is All Fun And Games Until Reality Intrudes”

  1. rosalie
    August 17th, 2011 @ 1:30 pm

    I  believe you’d have to be a little unhinged to want to live in a place like that.  They, and the people who want to live in outer space, are pretty much in the same boat (no pun intended).   If only he’d put that money into exploration of the ocean instead – or there are many good causes that are in desperate need of money.  

  2. blaster
    August 17th, 2011 @ 1:56 pm

    The way to make it work:

    http://www.aboardtheworld.com/our_story

    Saw it on Travel Channel or some such.  You have to be a zillionaire.  I think the people who live here are not so keen on Libertarianism.   

  3. Aggie Sprite
    August 17th, 2011 @ 2:17 pm

    I would rather this get off the ground (heh!), than Bezos’ 10,000 clock.

  4. Anonymous
    August 17th, 2011 @ 2:18 pm

    After reading that, I’m thinking of changing the name of the blog to “Cheap Anonymous Retribution.”

  5. Anonymous
    August 17th, 2011 @ 2:34 pm

    Hey, c’mon.  With a 1.25 MILLION (Doctor Evil reading) budget, this idea is obviously a world-beater…

  6. Anonymous
    August 17th, 2011 @ 2:41 pm

    Or just want to force you to do something. Diesel-electric sub, OTH cruise missile (I still remember some writer in the tank for RIAA suggesting that if pirate servers went somewhere like the Caymans that was the solution), speedboat loaded with explosives, it’s all good.

    “Nice little Seasteading you’ve got there. Shame if something were to happen to it…”

  7. Daily Pundit » I Mean, What’s The Worst That Can Happen?
    August 17th, 2011 @ 10:42 am

    […] The Seasteading Concept Is All Fun And Games Until Reality Intrudes […]

  8. Norman Invasion
    August 17th, 2011 @ 3:04 pm

    Tsk.  Come come, now lads!  Doctor Ron Paul says that all an intrepid country has to do is play nicely and no-one would dare harm them.  For instance, if we would just stop making matzoh with the blood of Palestinian children . . .

  9. McGehee
    August 17th, 2011 @ 3:48 pm

    Like, my single-malt Scotch fund, for instance.

  10. rosalie
    August 17th, 2011 @ 4:26 pm

    Yes, that’s definitely a worthy cause.

  11. JeffS
    August 17th, 2011 @ 5:11 pm

    I  believe you’d have to be a little unhinged to want to live in a place like that.

    Then Ron Paul would love live on that.

  12. Anonymous
    August 17th, 2011 @ 5:21 pm

    Ron Paul’s foreign policy concepts haven’t been valid since the Age of Sail. In an era where anyone can make a cruise missile out of a jetliner and an autopilot, we are always going to need a presence globally.

  13. Adjoran
    August 17th, 2011 @ 6:14 pm

    No, he’s a LOT unhinged.  His hinges don’t come close to connecting to anything.

  14. Adjoran
    August 17th, 2011 @ 6:16 pm

    Like most of the “big-‘L'” Libertarian ideas, it isn’t designed to withstand close scrutiny.

  15. Anonymous
    August 17th, 2011 @ 6:33 pm

    Not even in the age of sail, as I recall the “shores of Tripoli” were reached by ships that sailed.

  16. WyBlog - Seasteading: A Paleo-Libertarian Nirvana Tailor Made for Ron Paul
    August 17th, 2011 @ 4:00 pm

    Seasteading: A Paleo-Libertarian Nirvana Tailor Made for Ron Paul…

    Security might be a problem though, what with all that gold laying around. Smitty explains……

  17. Anonymous
    August 17th, 2011 @ 8:45 pm

    Unfortunately we’re not terribly anonymous.