I've spent quite a bit of time looking into Sealand, as it's an idea that fascinates me. As far as HavenCo goes, it was a complete sham, and was exposed as such by the ex-sysop, named Brian Lackey if I recall correctly. If you read the Wired article (linked at the Wikipedia article on HavenCo, no doubt), you'll see the kind of press the place was getting. Almost none of it was true. The serious problem for a data haven in a single location is internet access; in Sealand's case, they had a wifi connection to the mainland, and a satellite connection, and that was about it. Apparently, a single determined DOS attack could render the internet connection unusable. There goes your data haven. The reality is that any place like Sealand will have no real options for solid network infrastructure connections, and the options that are open to them will be easy to plug. I was amused when I read that Pirate Bay wanted to purchase Sealand; even if they could afford it, it could never provide for their bandwidth requirements. The legality of Sealand is that it is a tolerated aberration. It's not recognised as a country by any real country, and never will be. If the UK government was provided with a significant reason to shut it down, they would; the inhabitants may have a shotgun or two but if they really pissed off the mainland they'd just be shot down from a distance. One of the telltale signs that they were aware of this during the HavenCo days was the shift in permissable content, from "anything goes" to "no kiddie porn" to "nothing that's internationally considered illegal". In which case, why go with them and their extortionate pricing scheme in the first place? Sadly, it's a case of the fantasy being attractive enough to some people to blind them to the reality.
Alchy hit the nail on the head. They are only tolerated because so far they haven't been a problem. The minute they were to cause a real problem such as confiscating a ship that entered their "Territorial Waters" they would be smacked by the mainland. What they want for it is a joke as well. For that price it would probably be far cheaper to be elected president of some small country and then take it over from within. Less international hassles that way.
thepiratebay wanted to buy it, but the owner refused...and also thepiratebay wouldn't even have enough money to afford it anyway, read that somewhere i think we should found a corporation called "Umbrella" and buy Sealand
Haha! Another option: build a slightly bigger structure next door and invade the neighbouring "country". :thumbsup:
Perhaps you should debate it, since the basic human rights are violated over there too much. And well I think Denmark has violated them recently in Afghanistan, and it makes me feel ashamed being a Dane. So perhaps you should debate the human rights, since death penalty is a crystal clear violation of the human rights. Ok I am off to bed, talk to you all soon again But back on topic, The Vatican State is one of the smallest countries/states (if not the smallest ?) in Europe.
Re: ..... launch a coup claiming Sealand for your own. Have a look at the history of the place and you will discover that in fact this actually happened back in the 70's if I remember rightly. Yep, just had a look and my memory (for once) did fail me - I was a young kid when this happened but I remember the news commentary at the time: http://www.sealandgov.org/history.html
Yes, very old news indeed. Old forts that were used by pirate DJs way back when. They've even been in Dr. Who! They are quite close to me (well, other side of Kent and about 20-25 miles out to sea - hence the technically not part of the UK thing). They are in a TERRIBLE state. You really wouldn't want to live there. I believe "Sealand" is only one of the towers - at least one of the others was bloody dangerous, hence why noone went out there. And I do believe there have indeed been disputes with a few countries.
Yeah, I also remember that the pirate radio situation got completely out of hand and someone was actually killed during the fights to retain what was considered valuable off-shore assest. Whomever controlled the likes of these off shore stacks or radio masts attached to boats (look up Radio Caroline) ruled the unofficial radio stations. That was until it got so bad that the Government commissioned Radio One into being (Pop pickers! Poor old Alan 'Fluff' Freeman only died a few months ago). We were in the middle of doing a programme on Radio Caroline, when I fell out with one of the producers and canned the project which was a shame. It is an amazing story in itself. I only mention this as you talk about Kent. One way the DJ's onboard these ships knew that anyone was actually listening to them was asking drivers to park close to the shoreline in the 1960's and asking them to flash their headlights! It must have looked amazing! Britains equivalent of Wolfman Jack (infamous American DJ based apparently in Mexico and using 250k WATTS of power (holy hell batman!)) who appears in George Lucas' "American Graffiti". Sadly, Fluff, John Peel & Kenny Everett are no longer with us!
The notion of 'your own country' is a favourite one of mine. The sad truth is of course, it's never going to happen. Every bit of land on the surface of the globe is claimed and taken. Control of territory is hardwired into the human mind as much as eating and copulation. This, more than anything else, causes most of the world's ills, from kids fighting each other on city streets for their 'turf' to the invasion of Poland. Just look at the situation in the Middle East. No-one is just going to give you land without a fight and chances are, you'll lose. The problem with becoming a nation is that you're then subjected to all the problems that come with being a country, e.g. invasion and annexation by your inevitable larger neighbour (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_Minerva). Much better to find purchase your own private island or find a loophole like Roughs Tower and just use it to drop off the radar like Lundy (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lundy) did in the mid-20th century. The island remaining technically, if not practically within the United Kingdom, so it retained all the benefits (no taxes or customs) with none of the disadvantages (a Royal Marine landing party at your doorstep). Ideally, what you would want to do is purchase a freehold island somewhere far away from the authorities. Out of sight, out of mind. It should have landing facilities for ships and preferably a landing strip for fixed wing aircraft. A natural fresh water supply is also preferable, but not essential as lo-tech desalination stills are easy to set up. The perfect opportunity right now is Johnston Atoll, a former US nuclear test site and chemical weapon decommissioning facility in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, 717 nautical miles SW of Honolulu and one of the most remote places in the world (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnston_Atoll). Technically, it's an unincorporated terrority of the United States and even has a Hawaiian ZIP code. It's also up for auction (http://propertydisposal.gsa.gov/Property/PropforSale/ShowProperty.ASP?PropertyID=1273). Everytime I see this photo, it gets me excited - imagine the possibilities!
Wonder if they'll be interested in a trade for a few rare protos :lol: I agree so many possibilities!
"a former US nuclear test site and chemical weapon decommissioning facility" - those words actually disengage the majority of my initial interest I must admit. For the record, any estate agents dealing with this particular auction may do well to use their god given 'bullsh*t' skills. "An attractive, secluded island far from the madding crowd. This former US Government facility has many key features such as pre-installed subterranean heating facility (for those long, cold winter nights), strong & pre-tested foundations, and romantic glowing aqua marine lights which are guaranteed to softly glow for the next 10,000 years (minimum). May suit despot, anyone with a view to ruling the globe or tax evaders as well as those involved in gene manipulation through radioactive tamperings!"
It sounds bad, I'd admit, but there were over 1000 personnel stationed there at any given time over the last fifty years and the whole place has been decommissioned properly before its closure. Obviously, independent tests would be a sensible precaution, but it's probably no worse than living in New Mexico.
Okay, so the offer would have to say "Subject to survey" and I'd send in a surveyor to check it out. Mind you, they never spotted the faulty living room light switch and a couple of issues with ventilation in my house, so who's to say they'll remember to bring a Gieger counter?
Yeah, the whole purpose of it would put me off, too! People live in Hiroshima, Nagasaki and even the Chernobyl dead zone, but I don't think I'd fancy it, thanks! It also looks a little too, well, man-made. As does the Sealand tower (possibly the worst looking of all the towers!). I'd rather have something more stereotypical desert island! hehe ;-)
Yeah those things on that island might look like Palm trees, but closer scrutiny by an expert actually confirmed that they are giant, mutated water cress! ;-)
uhm anyone seen the movie blow ? that island at the bahamas that one of the bad guys bought was for real just rebuy it =) already wondering when google buys its own island/country and migrates they got the money the infrastructure what more do you want with more then 4 billion $ in reserves they could save a lot of taxes
