Region 16; The Principality of Rainbow - the Family "Micro Nation"
bodhi
here". The grass is always greener on the other side of the ocean it
seems. But no matter where we go,our scruffiness always seems to
eventually wear out our welcome with the locals.
Maybe it's time for the "Rainbow Nation" to start thinking
like...well...a nation.
Woodstock and i share a vision of community, but i challenge Woodie to
think....bigger... Not just a community, but a ...Principality. One
with our own currency and passports and Rainbow flag. A "Micro Nation"
- a sovereignty where we can have Rainbow 357 days a year and not have
to worry about cops and taxes and governments.
Micro Nations - It's being done all over the world.
Sure, more of the list below are off shore tax shelters for the very
rich. But hey, why not??? If some billionaire want to place his money
in our banks, we'll give him 1000 dollar bills with Spirit's picture on
it!!!
Check out the links below and start dreamin' everyone. This could be
our future!
namaste;
bodhi
Freedom Ship-The World's Newest Tax Haven?
http://www.freedomship.com
Freedom Ship International, Inc.(FSI ) plans to offer the opportunity
for an unprecedented lifestyle by constructing a sea-based, mobile,
full-spectrum residential, commercial, and resort community on a
mammoth, mobile, sea platform. The community will travel the entire
globe over a two-year cycle, never leaving international waters. It
will spend only 30% of its time in transit and the other 70% standing
offshore points of interest. A fleet of aircraft and watercraft will
ferry people from ship-to-shore, around-the-clock, residents for
touring and business, and as many as 30,000 onshore guests and visitors
daily.
Principality of Alameigh -
http://www.geocities.com/alameigh/index.html
A well laid out website with photos and informatinon about the
Principality of Alameigh, which is a soveriegn nation-state and only
one of many such entities classified as a "micronation." Micronationry
has several different meanings; and within the international community
there are as many worldviews, interpretations and definitions as there
are national entities.
Artemis Project
http://www.asi.org
The Artemis Project is going to take you there! The Project is a
private venture to establish a permanent, self-supporting community on
the Moon. Here, you will find out how we are going to get there, how
we are going to pay for it, and how you can come too!
The Empire of Atlantium
http://atlantium.org
Founded in 1981, and with Citizens resident in some 35 countries on 6
continents, the Sydney-based Empire of Atlantium is the world's
foremost primarily non-territorial state and global sovereignty
advocacy.
Las Portadas
http://www.geocities.com/MadisonAvenue/Boardroom/6969
Make a risk-free investment in the most Capitalistic free-nation
project to date. No money changes hands until a host country agrees to
terms of sale or lease. Promoters also earn a transparent share of
privatization proceeds.
Libertocracy, Where Freedom is the Law
http://www.libertcracy.com
A polycentric free enterprise government and socio-economic system
whereby sovereign individuals join together by mutual consent in a
civilization that respects and defends the freedom, dignity and rights
or all human beings equally. Where people live by the rule of sovereign
individual freedom, where a person is free to do anything that one
chooses as long as its not imposed on others and doesn't infringe upon
the equal right of other individuals to the same freedom.
Living Universe Foundation (Formerly called The Millennial Project)
http://www.luf.org
The planet is in crisis because of the human population explosion. We
have five billion new relatives coming to dinner in the next few
decades. What will they all eat? Where will they all live? If the
planet's ecosystem is collapsing under the weight of 5 billion people,
what will happen to us when there are 10 billion, then 15 billion? At
some point, we must expand our horizons beyond the land mass of this
single planet. Our survival depends on it.
Micronation and Sovereignty Website Index -
http://www.angelfire.com/nv/micronations
A "micronation" is any number of things... This website has a ton of
great information, to enter the website, click on the swinging Liberty
Bell.
New Utopia -
http://www.carbonfusion.com/utopia
New Utopia proposes to build a new city-state in the Caribbean Sea,
upon piers on the top of a submerged mountain. The nation of New Utopia
will be a principality, regulated by a formal declaration of
sovereignty and a constitution, somewhat resembling the Principality of
Monaco.
Oceania -The Atlantis Project for a New Country -
http://oceania.org
Oceania is a proposal for a new country. The Atlantis Project is
dedicated to the goal of establishing a new country named Oceania. This
country will be devoted to the value of freedom, and will first exist
as a sea city in the Caribbean. As no collectivist nation is likely to
sell us the land we need, we will build an island out of concrete and
steel.
Principality of New Pacific -
http://www.geocities.com/newpacificembassy/index.html
A new nation project, Principality of New Pacific is a working
government, with an economy, administration, armed forces and citizens.
The government runs the affairs of state of a 110 foot cargo ship.
Republic of Molossia -
http://www.molossia.org
The Republic of Molossia (moe-LOHSS-eeyah) is a sovereign, independent
nation, located in and completely surrounded by territory of the United
States. With an area of .5 hectares (1.3 acres), Molossia is one of the
smallest countries on earth, but what it lacks in size it makes up for
in spirit. A sense of humor characterizes most Molossian people, which,
coupled with the casual and comfortable western lifestyle, makes
Molossia an enjoyable place to visit.
Principality of SeaLand -
http://www.sealand.org
Sealand was founded as a sovereign Principality in 1967 in
international waters, six miles off the eastern shores of Britain. The
island fortess is conveniently situated from 65 to 100 miles from the
coasts of France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. The official language
of Sealand is English and the Sealand Dollar has a fixed exchange rate
of one U.S. dollar. Passports and stamps have been in circulation since
1969, however, contrary to many misleading websites and news articles,
Sealand passports are not for sale, and anyone offering such are
selling forgeries. Within a radius of 500 miles of Sealand live more
than 200 million people who enjoy some of the highest standards of
living in the world. This area also encompasses the financial,
industrial and cultural heart of Europe. The platform/island is
currently being fitted by HavenCo as an off-shore database, outside of
any governmental jurisdiction. When people think of hosting their data
offshore, the first place that often comes to mind is the Caribbean.
After all, the sunny countries to the south are warm, close to the
United States and typically feature lax policies related to business
and privacy. Now people are thinking of Sealand.
The Kingdom of Torhavn -
http://www.geocities.com/torhavn
A self-declared "new nation" currently buying land, and seeking to
gain sovereignty and independence. also known as the "world's first
'green' country," green referrring to the environmental stance of the
nation. Land is being bought and paid for now.
The Principality of Freedonia
http://www.freedonia.org
Libertarian (minarchist) new country project utilizing a unique system
of constitutional monarchy to ensure the preservation of freedom.
The Principality of Seborga -
http://www.masterweb.it/seaborga/eng-1.htm
The principality of Seborga is located in Liguria, Italy's famous
Flower Riviera, close to the French border. The Principality's
territory amounts to 14 square kilometres with a population of 2000
inhabitants. The capital occupies 5 square kilometres, where 362
Seborgans live: the citizens of the Principality.
bodhi
Sealand's website is:
http://www.sealandgov.com
Libertocracy's website is:
http://www.libertocracy.com
----
O.K. maybe you think my idea for the Rainbow Family is the product of
staying up all night smoking good dope...perhaps it is....Maybe i
should be a little more realistic.
Naw......let's keep the buzz going.....
There are a lot of uninhabited tropical islands for sale - just perfect
for a budding nation state. But unless you want to live like the
castaways of Gilligan's Islands with grass huts, you're going to have
to think about building some permament structures. How about if you
could ship your office, home, whatever, straight to our island already
pre-fabercated in shipping containers?? Check out the article below for
some ideas on this subject.
Now....i'm going to be googling the real estate sites for some islands
for sale.
namaste;
bodhi
Region16: On The Road
http://groups.msn.com/Region16
-----------
Self-Contained Living ~ Mi Casa Su Caja
Global Nomadic Housing For Expatriates ~ Part One
by Colin Reedy
The one common experience of all humanity is the challenge of
problems.? -- R. Buckminster Fuller
I first met Colin Reedy about 12 years ago. He had just returned from
studying design in Milan and I had just returned from Rio de Janeiro.?
We found ourselves stuck in Portland, Oregon, I as an owner and
designer of artist lofts, he as a struggling designer of furniture who
happened to end up living and working in one of my lofts. It was
apparent from the first moment I saw Colin's designs that he was a
maverick genius. A lot of artists passed through those lofts over the
years. Some of them went on to a great deal of fame. I can think of
few whose work was as immediately exciting as Colin's. Colin Reedy
carries with him an enthusiasm for creativity and for his work. He has
had a good deal of success, all of it deserved. He travels frequently
and has lived much of the past 20 years outside of the United States.
He first presented the idea of a nomadic house to me several years ago.
I've been pestering him for the past two years to put the concept into
a written form.Here's the first installment.
.
Creating A House To Roam The World
A few years ago, when facing a steep rent increase, I surveyed the
possibilities for new
housing. I'm a
designer/artist and not afraid to be creative when it comes to my
living and working space.I can find the hardware store and build walls,
basic cabinets, and figure out electricity and plumbing without too
many code violations.I'd been practicing on rented apartments and a
warehouse space for a few years, but I hate the idea of leaving all my
hard work behind me when I move.
If renting is out, then what are the options? Buying a house in my
price range means a huge financial mortgage payment situation and
probably a major renovation project. I don't have the money, time,
or
interest for this now. Besides, I am not sure I want to live in one
place long enough to make a house investment worth it. I like to
travel and seem to move often as I search for my ultimate escape
destination. The last 12 years have seen me living in Chicago, San
Francisco, Rome, Milan, Amsterdam, Portland, and now Seattleand I'm
hoping to land myself in Australia or New Zealand in a couple years.
Mobile homes and recreational vehicles offer the portability for travel
(across land), but mobile homes often use cheap materials and poor
construction and still cost many thousands of dollars. An RV is more
travel than home with so much of cost and maintenance involving
the
engine and mechanical parts. Furthermore, both mobile homes and RVs
usually come pre-designed with little room for customizationand little
room in general.
And for my needs, which involves some work area to use tools, make a
mess, and keep my stuff secure, and RV wouldn't be the choice.
So my criteria are: cheap ownership, some measure of portability,
security, and opportunity for customization. Solution: a huge foot
locker with windows and a door maybe on wheels! And then I found
thousands of just what I needed!
What you start with...
Portland and Seattle are shipping ports and every day I see huge boats
loading and unloading giant metal containers. These containers arrive
and depart on train cars or semi-trucks, easily hoisted and set in
place with cranes or forklifts. Shipping containers are a global
standard unit and come in sizes of 20, 24, 40, and 45 feet long with 20
and 40 footers being the most common. Eight feet high and 8.5 feet
wide, they are sturdily built to stack up 8 to10 units and connect at
the corners with a simple locking device. They can even be found
extra tall at 9.5 or 10 feet high. All containers have wooden floors
about 1.25 inches thick of plywood or tongue and groove boards. The
construction is generally heavy gauge corrugated steel re-enforced at
the four corners and center of each long side with a vertical support
of steel square tube. And the doors could secure a bank vault!
Each
of the double doors locks in place with two floor to roof steel poles
that twist into position with lots of redundant mechanisms and
locations for four burly padlocks. Remember, these containers were
designed to survive stormy sea crossings and then be handled and opened
by clumsy drunk dock workers in any part of the world.
Transportable Living Space
Initial investigations only made me more excited about the possibility
to create a living/working situation based on shipping containers.
Individually, I could get a good used one for about $1500-1800. If I
wanted 2 or 3, which seemed like a better scenario, the price could
drop as low as $1200-1300 each. These are Portland, Oregon, prices and
with the global abundance of containers, I'm sure even greater deals
can be found in Hong Kong, Sydney, Rotterdam, Dakar. Prices don't lower
much for size and I felt the 40 footers had the biggest selection and
design possibility. Another major is aluminum or steel. A 40-foot
steel container weighs about 9000 pounds empty, compared to 6800 for
the same aluminum container. Cutting and drilling aluminum is much
easier than steel, but welding it requires some skill and equipment not
as readily available as for steel. I'm assuming I'll be cutting
windows, vents, and holes for electricity and water so what material I
choose makes a difference. I have a little wire feed welder and can
get a cutting torch or (better) rent a plasma cutter for $40-50 per
day. Side note: a plasma cutter sounds very scary high tech, but uses
only air and electricity to cleanly slice thru steel and even stainless
steel like butter. All you need is an air compressor. A truly
amazing tool, but it will NOT work on aluminum.
Shipping containers used on ocean going vessels must be inspected and
certified every so often because they are stacked very high and subject
to rigorous conditions. Containers used on trains and trucks are
never stacked more than two high and do not require the same
inspections. Modifications such as windows, doors, vents and so forth
would not prevent a container from passing inspection as long as it
still could be stacked and locked in place. However, steel braces may
be required over large holes such as windows or additional doors. So
I could ship my modular nomadic studio from Seattle to Sydney, no
problem!
What about delivery? If I purchased a container from any of the few
companies in the Portland or Seattle area, they would deliver it by
truck (anywhere a truck can maneuver I guessed) in either metropolitan
area for $150. And a moving fee within the area would be a similar
rate. On-site maneuvering could require a crane and reach upwards of
a few hundred dollars. Construction contractors often use shipping
containers as on-site offices or storage, so this situation is not
unusual.
But where would I put it? And what about electricity and water and
all the amenities a normal living situation offers? Ok, here's the
creative part. I saw this as a phase situation whereby initially I
would NOT reside in these containers. I would need a place with
electricity and water nearby while I carried out the necessary
modifications. A friend offered a 60 by 100 foot empty lot for
$300/month on which I could conduct my efforts and reside later if I
chose. I could hook up to his electricity and water as long as
needed. Yes, I am back in the rent situation, but at about 20-2
5%
what I would be paying otherwise. I felt like I had enough information
to start designing.
I searched for examples of prior efforts to modify shipping. The
companies that sold the containers sometimes made modifications like
windows or doors for the contractors to use at construction sites, but
nothing interesting.
I found images from Hong Kong where people were living in containers
set on huge metal frames in an apartment-like arrangement. Not much
had been done to the containers except stairway access. The best
examples I found were not for shipping containers, but from mid-century
efforts at modular housing or utopian mass housing. In the 1920's
and 30's, the German Bauhaus movement and the French architect Le
Corbusier proposed many of the first modern apartment buildings with
efficient floor plans to equitably house the masses.
Dymaxion House-Buckminster Fuller
But the American engineer/architect/futurist, Buckminster Fuller
(known best for his geodesic dome designs) probably offered the best
examples in his Dymaxion House designs.Fuller proposed mass produced
compact housing designs that offered all the amenities of a
conventional dwelling. From him I found good inspiration for the
bathroom design and maybe more.
I imagine two or three containers configured for living, studio, and
workshop. Making use of the outside areas would be as important as
the inside areas. Awnings, tarps, decks, balconies, or glass covered
green house areas could make the whole situation very comfortable. I
started to sketch ideas and I even built a small model of the 60 x 100
foot site with three accurate scaled wooden blocks to represent the
containers.
Next issue:
- configurations that create courtyards and outdoor work areas that
maximize the space between containers.
- stacking the containers on top of one another to create covered
areas, car parking, and terraces.
- Electricity options from local hook up to passive and active solar.
- Water service for kitchen and bathrooms and rain collection planning.
- Heating ideas for cold climates and venting circulation for warmer
climates.
bodhi
from http://www.zyva.org.uk/islale.html
This page is about tropical islands for sale, desert islands, islands
for sale in general, the idea of freedom and independence, remoteness,
tax avoidance, possible sovereignty, setting up your own country, a
general purpose wide open category of interest in that realm of
research.
Whilst I am not a multi-millionaire (yet), I am independently wealthy,
and it is my intention to extend that independence to owning my own
island. Also, I'm an idealist, and I am of the opinion that if I became
sovereign ruler (benign dictator) of a land, I could make a much better
job of it than most well-established conventional countries, and
provide people within my dominion a better freedom and quality of life
than is found in most normal ordinary countries!
To make a start on this wild idea of freedom, I'm listing a few ISLANDS
FOR SALE. Here's a few to start with:
Clark Cay (eBay item 1726541804)
http://www.south-pacific-island-for-sale.com
also see...
http://www.privateislandsonline.com
www.goin2travel.com/islands.htm
www.waterfront-plantation-for-sale.com
www.waterfront-resort-for-sale.com
www.waterfront-home-vanuatu.com
www.waterfront-residence-for-sale.com
www.vladi-private-islands.de/sales_islands/sites/05_green_1.html
Other points of note: There's a difference between owning an island and
having sovereignty. Sovereignty is a mixed blessing, as various things
have to be budgeted for, such as defense for example! In the case of
not having sovereignty, it's a matter of making sure the laws of the
country which has the sovereignty aren't too bad. For example, the tax
haven status. However I have heard that there exist islands which can
be got, including the sovereignty, but the defense issue is covered by
a neighbouring state provided they have use of the air-space over the
island's territory.
richin...@earthlink.net
unreachable as first perceived. So, where's the island?
richin...@earthlink.net
bodhi
i haven't found one yet to my liking, but i'm still looking. Man, some
of these islands are expensive!
Choosing a Tropical Island
by Cheyenne Morrison
The potential for price appreciation, though, varies from island to
island. Location is the most important factor affecting the value of a
tropical island, when you buy a tropical island. You're not just buying
a tropical island, you're buying its surroundings. There should be a
village nearby where one can get supplies and an airport close at hand,
for instance. In other words, what makes a tropical island feasible is
the infrastructure that is available to it.
a tropical island with buildings on it will usually need an on-site
caretaker, who will water the plants and keep the houses clean.
Building infrastructure on a tropical island can also be more costly
than on the mainland as all supplies and workmen must be transported by
boat.
When shopping around, you have to not only consider the price of the
island but how much it's going to cost to bring it up to livable
standards if it's not already livable. Is there fresh water? Is a home
included? If not, construction costs will run about thirty-percent or
more over land-based homes. How do you get back and forth? Can you live
comfortably in isolation with no stores or restaurants within walking
(or swimming) distance?
You'll find water is the most important element on a tropical island.
Every island has some variety of options to obtaining fresh water. Look
for a ground water table high enough to dig a well. If a well already
exists, have it inspected to insure it's dependable. Fresh water can
often be gotten from a cistern and catchment arrangement for collecting
rainwater. Check the annual rainfalls. The estimated amount of water
needed annually for part-time island living is 30,000 to 100,000
gallons for full-time living which will require about forty inches of
annual rainfall."