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PirateBay Plans to Buy Sealand and Become Own Country

buysealand.com — Bittorrent tracker PirateBay.org, currently based in Sweden, plans to purchase the man-made island-country, Sealand, off the coast of the UK. Sealand is its own country, and the PirateBay would not be subject to the jurisdiction of any nations if it relocated to the island. TPB is seaking donations to help go through with this plan.

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  • Rapishorrid, on 10/29/2007, -6/+284I wonder if Sealand will be a member of the WTO.
    • tidu, on 10/24/2007, -8/+528This is just hilarious, reminds me of a silly plot that would be in Family Guy or the Simpsons...
    • sockpuppets, on 10/31/2007, -9/+982In unrelated news eBay user "RIAA" became the winner bidder on item 56756856, LQQK MINT Soviet Submarine WITH TORPEDOS! NR!!
    • sockpuppets, on 10/24/2007, -2/+802Oh and if they actually wind up owning this thing they *better* be arriving there on a pirate ship.
    • praisethelard, on 06/06/2008, -6/+146Well...I don't believe Sealand is even recognized by any country as being a country.

      From Wikipedia:
      Sealand's claims to sovereignty and legitimacy are not recognised by any country, yet it is sometimes cited in debates as an interesting case study of how various principles of international law can be applied to a territorial dispute.
    • Yashar, on 10/12/2007, -66/+11They are going to need alot of money, the realtor's site says:

      Price: XXX,XXX,XXX euros

    • OBKenobi, on 10/12/2007, -4/+250How long before the MAFIAA fleet arrives?

      I will have to travel to Sealand at once to coordinate the defenses. They will surely need my help.

      R2-DV8, you stay here and keep spamming Digg on my behalf while I'm gone. And try not to write "Will it blend?" if you can help it.
    • dbxz, on 10/12/2007, -1/+145haha! lets stick it to the man... and buy a country
    • AkatsukiNoTobi, on 10/12/2007, -3/+134Now us nerds (or at least just me) will have a dream island to take a vacation to. =D
    • andrew52, on 10/12/2007, -6/+79http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sealand
    • AReallyGoodName, on 10/12/2007, -12/+52Why would you need to buy sealand?
      It isn't internationally recognised and if you bought it all you'd be getting is a slip of paper that has no legal basis anywhere in the world.
      The sellers could just take it straight back by force.
    • andy370, on 10/12/2007, -1/+38Pics and blueprints:
      http://www.bobleroi.co.uk/ScrapBook/SealandOne/ThisIsSealand.html
    • sphinx13, on 10/12/2007, -0/+51Wikipedia says they are only considering offers in the eight digits.
      How is Pirate bay going to come up with that much money?
    • otheruser, on 10/24/2007, -2/+394Purchasing? Buying? Donating?!?

      What the hell, we're pirates, we'll just board the damn place and claim it as our own!
    • BESTenemy, on 10/12/2007, -4/+136That means they'll be switching to carrier pigeon torrent service.

      Can't wait to start "seeding".
    • Ignignokt01, on 10/12/2007, -7/+97Here's a question: How do you get the internets on an island like that?
    • brundlefly76, on 10/12/2007, -1/+32Whether Sealand is a really a country or not is pretty much a matter of how much the rest of the world cares.
    • zweben, on 10/12/2007, -24/+7"Wikipedia says they are only considering offers in the eight digits.
      How is Pirate bay going to come up with that much money?"

      Who says they need money?
    • bpapa, on 10/12/2007, -30/+25This is awesome. I can't wait to take a vacation there, and jack them for all their *****. Hey, stealing will be legal there, right?
    • Backlash, on 10/12/2007, -15/+56THIS JUST IN!

      The MPAA has just purchased Sealand.
    • oOLiquidNightOo, on 10/12/2007, -14/+4i'm confused. wasn't this essentially the plot of a stephenson novel?
    • caryw, on 10/12/2007, -1/+43A full service data center is operated by "HavenCo" on Sealand.

      They have multiple redundant links to the internet.

      More information on HavenCo:
      http://www.havenco.com/

      Slashdot interview with HavenCo CTO:
      http://interviews.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=00/07/02/160253&mode=nested
    • Livert, on 10/12/2007, -3/+150Why buy Sealand? New Zealand was going for 500 bucks on Ebay about a year ago.
    • da_bradler, on 10/12/2007, -54/+80wouldn't a poor african nation be cheaper? plus those come with there own sla... working force. jk ;)
    • FushBuck, on 10/12/2007, -1/+22Gawwd I love these people! Quick ye landlubbers, scurry to make yer donations now! I gave them a scallywag of dabloons, or whatever it's called.

      But seriously, how sad it is that only pirates can be free nowadays.

    • OBKenobi, on 10/12/2007, -16/+33[quote]Here's a question: How do you get the internets on an island like that?[/quote]

      Satellite.

      I don't think they're moving the servers there though, so it doesn't matter in their case. They just need to have an office there for them to be registered as a Sealand company.

      It's like putting your $$$ in an offshore bank. The kind of thing big-time criminals like Dick Cheney do.

      You might also want to look up CIA front companies.
    • dhughes, on 10/12/2007, -3/+16 The asking price is $975 million US (that's nine figures) that's just the *asking price*, so really if someone really wanted it the price could go over a billion.

      Some son of an oil baron in a not to be named middle part of the east probably has a couple of billion as pocket change to play with.
    • sfsdfasdf, on 10/12/2007, -1/+62ROFL good luck using paypal.
    • neko, on 10/12/2007, -1/+24What about the Milky Way? Are there no further bids for this exquisite galaxy?

      Sold! To the being of inconceivable horror.
    • G-RaZoR, on 10/12/2007, -2/+30hmmm.... Sealand you say...

      Pros:
      Infastructure
      Pirate Ship Dock
      "Away" from it all

      Cons:
      Was on fire in Summer '06
      What do you call the citizens? (USA has Americans, Canada has Canadians, Sealand has Sealandians? wtf?)
      The setup is old and looks well, it looks jank. It's is all rusted up and what not.

      Seems to me it would be cheaper to build your own infastructure on an existing island/country combo. Also, at the end of the day, how many people can seriously populate that setup anyway? They need land, land where they can actually build things.


      They need a realtor.
    • eviltoaster2go, on 10/12/2007, -4/+34OMG I was KIDDING when I made that comment for Piratebay to move to Sealand if things didn't work out in sweden. Still, I'm glad to see my voice being heard on digg ^_^

      http://digg.com/tech_news/ThePirateBay_Strikes_Back
    • wounded625, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3could they build around it?
      if so, id so build a beach and a swing set!
    • fcmk, on 10/12/2007, -1/+59"What do you call the citizens? (USA has Americans, Canada has Canadians, Sealand has Sealandians? wtf?)"

      Pirates, from here on.
    • ModernTenshi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+69I say they buy it, and rename it Pirate Island. You know how cool it would be to check out Pirate Island in Google Earth, or if you donate and become a citizen (how that works I don't know) and be able to say you have dual citizenship in both your current country of residence, and Pirate Island?

      That would ***** rock man, ***** ROCK.
    • Charlotte_Web, on 10/12/2007, -3/+25The asking price is between $130 million and almost a billion dollars.

      Does TPB really expect that their users, who are obviously unaccustomed to paying for things, are really going to pony up that kind of money?

      Besides, wouldn't they be better off just buying a few dedicated servers on Sealand?
    • naiku, on 10/12/2007, -0/+21donated 40$. they helped me more then enough in the past. I wish them the best of luck.

      It will be awesome when people ask about my TPB shirt, i can say...well they do own a country.
    • nx01, on 10/12/2007, -0/+32from sealandgov.org

      "The history of Sealand is a story of a struggle for liberty. Sealand was founded on the principle that any group of people dissatisfied with the oppressive laws and restrictions of existing nation states may declare independence in any place not claimed to be under the jurisdiction of another sovereign entity."

      Nuff said.
    • junkmail02, on 10/12/2007, -20/+2w0w
    • jeriqo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+20Ignignokt01 :

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Map_of_Sealand_with_territorial_waters.svg

      I'm sure they can get internet access from that IP switch
    • jetsetgo, on 10/12/2007, -8/+2@sockpuppets

      A+++++ COMMENT!! WOULD READ AGAIN!
    • 4ndr3wk, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5http://thepiratebay.org/blog
    • Myonosken, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2Ipswich has nothing of value.
    • DoodlesMcPooh, on 10/12/2007, -2/+28By late 1968, the British navy had become aware of the new situation off the coast of England. They were interested in terminating the state of affairs brought about by an error committed by the most senior military authorities without causing too much uproar.

      Units of the navy entered the territorial waters claimed by Roy of Sealand. As he was aware of his sovereignty, Roy of Sealand threatened the navy by undertaking defensive activity. Shots were fired from Sealand in warning.

      Since Roy of Sealand was still an English citizen, he was thus accused of extensive crimes in Britain and was summoned to an English court. The result of this lawsuit in Chelmsford, Essex was a spectacular success for Sealand's claim to sovereignty. In its judgment of 25 November 1968, the court declared that it was not competent in Roy of Sealand's case as it could not exert any jurisdiction outside of British national territory. This is the first de facto recognition of the Principality of Sealand. English law had ruled that Sealand was not part of the United Kingdom, nor did any other nation claim it, hence Prince Roy's declaration of a new Sovereign State was de facto upheld.

      Building a New Nation
      Seven years later on 25 September 1975, Roy of Sealand proclaimed the Constitution of the Principality. Over time, other national treasures were developed, such as the flag of the Principality of Sealand, its national anthem, stamps, as well as gold and silver coins launched as Sealand Dollars. Finally, passports of the Principality of Sealand were issued to those who had helped Sealand in some way, though they were never for sale.

      Sealand Fights Off Invaders (and Wins a War)
      In August of 1978, a number of Dutch men came to Sealand in the employ of a German businessman. They were there to discuss business dealings with Sealand. While Roy was away in Britain, these men kidnapped Prince Roy's son Michael, and took Sealand by force. Soon after, Roy recaptured the island with a group of his own men and held the attackers as prisoners of war.

      During the time that he held the prisoners, the Governments of the Netherlands and Germany petitioned for their release. First they asked England to intervene in the matter, but the British government cited their earlier court decision as evidence that they made no claim to the territory of Sealand. Then, in an act of de facto recognition of Sealand's sovereignty, Germany sent a diplomat directly to Sealand to negotiate for the release of their citizen.

      Roy first released the Dutch citizens, as the war was over, and the Geneva Convention requires the release of all prisoners. The German was held longer, as he had accepted a Sealand Passport, and therefore was guilty of treason. Prince Roy, who was grateful that the incident had not resulted in a loss of life, and did not want to bloody the reputation of Sealand, eventually released him as well.
    • kevin.gc, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Maybe this is just a trick to get the MPAA in a bidding war to buy Sealand, which will then hand over the cash to Pirate Bay.
      • Godlike, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1Hah, that would be the 'LOL U GOT PWNED' story of the century.
    • Crankinthepants, on 10/12/2007, -6/+1AARRRRrrr! Me Mateys
    • bonecones, on 10/12/2007, -1/+8@G-RaZoR:

      I guess you could call them Seamen...
    • klbclem, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5They should make the island a server farm...they would get a return on investment in like a year with all the casino websites that would be interested.
    • kalleanka, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I hereby declare war on Sealand and I declare that all its land belongs to me, Sir kalleanka.

      So, now what? I'm pretty sure foreign countries recognizes my ownership of this piece of junk in the ocean just as much as they recognize the current "owners" right to it.
    • foolfromhell, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3they will be based on any country, but have diplomatic immunity, so no one can sue.
      No need for high-speed intarweb on Sealand
    • simpleid, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4You know what's scary, Scientologists could actually afford it....
    • pozzoe, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9From buysealand.com :
      "Plan B: If we do not get enough money required to buy the micronation of Sealand, we will try to buy another small island somwhere and claim it as our own country (prices start from USD 50 000)."

      Now we are talking....
    • Sealab2021, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I think that can help them start up an underwater sealab ;)
    • birkoph, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I wonder if people will attack them and steal their computers and underwear.

  • Liotius, on 10/12/2007, -112/+4As a warning... I don't think this is actually related to TPB
    • saxonthebeach, on 10/12/2007, -2/+62http://thepiratebay.org

      click and see for yourself
    • nobullshit, on 10/12/2007, -2/+32in other news, starbucks opens up 4th coffee house in Sealand
    • foobar5892, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I wonder what they'll do with the donated money if they don't raise enough to pay for the island. Holiday in Hawaii anyone?
    • pabloD, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"Plan B: If we do not get enough money required to buy the micronation of Sealand, we will try to buy another small island somwhere and claim it as our own country (prices start from USD 50 000)."
      • ultrasonicsite, on 12/15/2007, -0/+0Holy crap that's all it costs, I don't know why but I had this image in my head of an island costing millions, if not billions! O.O
  • Rapishorrid, on 10/20/2007, -1/+37http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v299/Xionith/sealand.jpg

    Liotius: I made it easier for you
  • nova1989, on 10/31/2007, -3/+41I think I speak for everyone when I say...take that Swedish government. ha!
    • TheCount, on 10/20/2007, -4/+85The Swedish government is actually one of the better governments out there, The Pirate Bay has gotten away with A LOT more there than they ever would in America. The only reason they've been upping pressure on "The Bay" recently is because of all the outside pressure.

      Plus, Swedish women are HOT!
    • thejadedmonkey, on 10/12/2007, -19/+2Holy crap yes! I have a date this saturday with an irish/sweedish girl and I am happy! :)
    • alexandreracine, on 10/12/2007, -10/+2"Plus, Swedish women are HOT!"

      Yep, some are really hot.
    • teethman, on 10/12/2007, -6/+6Do you realize the potential here? This is the start of the first underwater country. Its just an old military base now, but in time, it will be built upon and expanded. We will travel in underwater tubes. It will be the most futuristic and free country in the world. We the people must unite for the cause. Not for pirating stuff for free, but to be free! Get your guns and computers ready, we must sail to Sealand!

      Also, hot air balloon ships. We have the technology.
      • Godlike, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1You guys do of course realize that there are laws in every technologically advanced country that prohibit the export of extremely advanced and military techologies to other non-treaty nations, right? You can think they are immune, but at a certain point you are going to have to go to England to get that replacement processor or RAM or whathaveyou, and if it becomes a big enough issue for the world they will just use embargos to stop them.
  • theDevilsDue, on 10/20/2007, -3/+137Why don't they just use the ad revenue to buy an island instead of soliciting donations? If the prices start at ~$50k USD they should be able to handle that no problem.

    On a side note, I've heard that the MPAA and the RIAA are looking to buy their own small country. When they do, they will promptly declare war on the "Pirates of Sealand."
    • saxonthebeach, on 10/12/2007, -1/+38that would be great- classic MPAA/RIAA logic....spend millions harassing filesharers, and then complain about lost revenues and that "the artists are suffering"
    • dunezone, on 10/20/2007, -1/+42Im liking this War idea.
    • SirNoobius, on 10/20/2007, -5/+79they already have it. it's called USA
    • Gryffydd, on 10/20/2007, -2/+291 word: Infrastructure. Sealand has it...$50k islands don't.
    • seanroth, on 10/20/2007, -0/+14This is why:
      "The price for Sealand is probably about $2.000.000.000. We don't really care. We're going for it anyhow! We really want to see what the community can do - with it's own island. Since we are all for sharing the country would be shared amongst us all."
      From http://thepiratebay.org/blog
    • dancrew32, on 10/20/2007, -4/+64I'm not gonna lie.. If I received 2 billion dollars in donations, I would probably just keep it, not pay for the island and disappear forever.
    • Arnos, on 10/12/2007, -0/+13So if the MPAA and the RIAA were to join to create a National Industries Negotiation & Jurisdiction Association...

      JUST THINK OF THE BATTLES!!!!
    • G-RaZoR, on 10/12/2007, -2/+10Hey Fantastic! NINJA vs MAFIAA
    • Gryffydd, on 10/20/2007, -1/+24@dancrew32
      Disappear where? Your own country? :D
    • draebor, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Maybe TPB can counter-sue the RIAA and MPAA for the down payment.
    • cezar, on 10/12/2007, -1/+172 Billion is way out there. I think it'd be closer to 40 million. For 2 billion you could just builds a platform the same as sealand and for a lot less.
    • konspence, on 10/12/2007, -0/+16No, what the piratebay should do is just do server colocation with HavenCo, the ISP on sealand.

      http://www.havenco.com/products_and_services/rates.html

      Under the acceptable use it says
      Sealand currently has no specific regulations regarding patents, libel, restrictions on political speech, cryptography, restrictions on maintaining customer records, DMCA or music sharing services.
    • Beamerboy, on 10/12/2007, -10/+1They already bought their own small country didn't they? I was sure they owned a piece of land in the western seas of the Atlantic called The United States of America, although I could be wrong.
    • pestilence4hr, on 10/12/2007, -3/+9@ G-RaZoR

      Actually, ninjas vs. pirates, but A+ for effort.
    • Unclebob1992, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Because if they bought an island they would have to call it a country while technically it isn't. If they buy Sealand and anyone says it isn't a country they can legally prove them wrong.
  • cablemodemguy, on 10/20/2007, -2/+17Why didn't somebody do this a long time ago?
    I hope they give the new home a new coat of paint!
    • drmonkey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+45Because it cost's 2 billion dollars?
  • ScottJG, on 10/29/2007, -7/+28Wouldnt it be kinda hard to get food and other supplies delivered to this new "country" though? They would have to go to land, but that would mean arrest, unless, of course, they are somehow torrenting food now...
    • Borramakot, on 10/20/2007, -1/+16Who cares? They ll turn the "nation" into a server farm, outside the jurisdiction of any nation's laws.
    • firsttube, on 10/12/2007, -12/+1what will they think of next, torrent some lawyers?
    • Jacob, on 10/20/2007, -1/+25how can you be charged with a crime in a country that the crime wasn't commited in. It's not like copyright infringement is an international crime. Not to mention that this counrty wouldn't be a member of the UN so they don't have to follow the laws of the UN.
    • wendelgee2, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6like the Crypt in Cryptonomicon!

      I hope they rename it the Sultinate of Kinakuta!
    • AmazingAndrex, on 10/12/2007, -7/+2They could have their own agriculture. And importing isn't against the law, unless there's an embargo.
    • Atomic1fire, on 10/12/2007, -0/+26I guess the countrys national flag will be changed to a black skull then
    • kryptobs2000, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2why would they even have to live there? They own it, they can make any kind of law they want to. They could still be a citizen of another country yet not be commiting a crime because their crime would not take place in that country.
    • redcard, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2They would have to live there because they would not be OWNERS of the "nation" , or whatever.. but rather, Custodians. The royal line of Sealand would still own the land per their constitution.

      Besides, how do you think the "royals" got their ownership? Piracy.

    • pabloD, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2"I guess the countrys national flag will be changed to a black skull then"

      It better be. That's gonna be half the fun.
  • UnoriginalMind, on 10/29/2007, -1/+87Brilliant, but still sounds ridiculous. I REALLY want to see how this turns out.
    • broomett, on 10/20/2007, -24/+3We can tell you how it turns out right now. It doesn't. They have ZERO chance of getting it, and I say that with no exaggeration. Zero chance.
      • nastajus, on 10/20/2007, -0/+1successful serious people can make and earn money.
  • friend18, on 10/29/2007, -1/+28Coalition of the Willing: next invasion:sealand
    • shinynew, on 10/12/2007, -1/+32I'm sure we will get the mission accomplished for that in like a year, and pull out in like 10.
    • KJSatz, on 10/12/2007, -24/+2The U.S. have enough troops stationed in Germany and England to easily kill all the ***** on Sealand, pirate or no. Or they could nuke 'em. That'd be pretty freakin' sweet.

      I hope they get it. I know they won't but...if they get an island that would be cool too.
    • shinynew, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4@KJSatz
      wtf...
      I dont think that 3.1 nms would be far enough away for the UK to escape the blast.
  • warMen, on 10/29/2007, -0/+20that makes me happy. But does that also mean they could get bombed?
    • ericcoolls, on 10/29/2007, -5/+2only if a country declares war on their small island.
    • KJSatz, on 10/29/2007, -0/+17And they won't declare war since that would essentially admit Sealand exists (sorta like what we're seeing around Israel)...but they could just bomb the ***** out of them then lie about it. :D.
    • leboff, on 10/12/2007, -8/+2the only people at war with israel are the ones that refuse to admit it is a country. so what the ***** are you talking about?
    • miles32, on 10/29/2007, -0/+2can anyone say warhead testing?
  • TheRyanSinger, on 10/29/2007, -0/+8Now this is a great idea! help support buying an island.
  • conto1987, on 10/12/2007, -43/+6Why doesnt piratebay worry about their crappy site. Mininova organizes torrents much better
    • Borramakot, on 10/12/2007, -0/+60The Pirate Bay isn't great for its tracker as much for its philosophy and attitude. I cant imagine anyone else thinking of or attempting something like this.
    • AmazingAndrex, on 10/12/2007, -5/+22I liked Mininova before it went Web 2.0. Now it's atrocious. There, I said it.
    • over900, on 10/12/2007, -0/+17mininova is a torrent listing. it doesn't actually track any of the torrents available, while piratebay does the hosting + tracking. Many of the torrents hosted on mininova are tracked by piratebay.
    • wafflez, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5in my opinion, any torrenting site with a comment system owns. but i sure wish they would also implement a ratio system like on oink. i'm sick of dead trackers, 0 seeds, etc because of greedy leechers.
  • ryansebiz, on 10/29/2007, -1/+114Then there really will be a Pirate Bay!
    • KJSatz, on 10/12/2007, -5/+7Actually not so much a bay as a small area of ocean between the pillars jutting out of it....
  • sfacets, on 10/20/2007, -0/+39Hell yes! Donating now!
    • fitchmicah, on 10/12/2007, -0/+19I don't even use them, but me too!
    • an7agonist, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Same here. Maybe I can get their commerce secretary if I pay enough? ^_^
    • scooterbaga, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3sign me up to be a...

      Sealandian?
  • bigtrouble77, on 10/29/2007, -0/+96Maybe they should go in on it with allofmp3... I'm pretty sure they have enough cash lying around.
    • livejamie, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5ahah great idea
    • Yakubovich, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10AllOfMp3 actually sends files to people, whereas The Pirate Bay only has tiny torrent files. Since a ``country'' like Sealand won't have very high bandwidth, the pirates can benefit from it whereas the Russians can't.
    • KungPower, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1-in the TRILLIONS
  • postal21, on 10/29/2007, -3/+34I hope they add flightpaths...

    Do I need to be level 70 to go there?
    • sobriquet, on 10/29/2007, -0/+6No, but it starts lagging real bad once you get into town.
    • ubergeek09, on 10/29/2007, -0/+1What happens when the servers for the island crash? Does everyone die if they don't log out?
  • Araya213, on 10/29/2007, -0/+37So, won't they still have to connect through a mainland ISP? They'll just get blocked or denied service.
    • KJSatz, on 10/20/2007, -0/+9Good point. Right now Sealand gets its internetz via England. Hmm....
    • naiku, on 10/20/2007, -0/+10but then sealand (Pirate Bay) will go to war with englands isp! deny an entire countries internet! TPB wont stand for that.
    • redcard, on 10/20/2007, -5/+1Except Sealand is NOT a country.


  • TheNik, on 10/29/2007, -0/+22Haha, I definitely donated. I would so carry dual-citizenship.
    • spisska, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7I would think that selling citizenship could be a definite source of income for Pirate Bay Land. I sure as hell would send them $50 for a Pirate Bay passport.

      But then again, my buddy is a certified Saint in the 24-hour church of Elvis (and may actually be Elvis, according to his church-issued saint card). That was only $20.

      Of course I wouldn't actually try to travel on a Pirate Bay passport, but I bet someone will.
    • redcard, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Just a note.. if you're a US Citizen, you cannot carry dual-citizenship anymore. You can be born into it, but you cannot electively carry it. You are either a US Citizen, or not a US Citizen, and this occurs once you accept the other country's citizenship. So.. Even if Sealand might allow dual citizenship, the US doesn't.
    • pabloD, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I would gladly give up my US citizenship to become a citizen of The Pirate Bay.
      "Are you American?"
      "No, I'm a Pirate."
      That's got *such* a nice ring to it.
    • QuidnuncQuixot, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1@redcard - Funny, I finally got my dual-citizenship last month; I became a German in addition to my American citizenship.

      According to a Supreme Court decision: “[dual citizenship has a] status long recognized in the law” and “a person may have and exercise rights of nationality in two countries and be subject to the responsibilities of both. The mere fact he asserts the rights of one citizenship does not without more mean that he renounces the other" (Kawakita vs. US - 1952)

      If you are becoming a naturalized US citizen, you are required to take a citizenship oath which includes a portion renouncing your old citizenship. Fortunately, these oaths are not binding by your original nation's laws. Both countries will play a game where they "ignore" the fact that you have the other country's citizenship. The US only officially recognizes my US citizenship, Germany only officially recognizes my German citizenship.

      Things are further complicated, as the US has a mixed policy of jus soli and jus sanguinis, causing some to come to the US temporarily to establish "anchor babies" which can gain the citizenship of the US and their parents' home country.
    • marcus4132, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1@pabloD:
      --I would gladly give up my US citizenship to become a citizen of The Pirate Bay. --

      Until you got deported, then what will you do, move to "sealand"?


  • NoTiG, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8heh. if they are their own nation then whats to prevent them from being acquired once again by a bigger country... through force
    • Lixie, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10They won't. The sad reality is that no country would be obligated to protect them from the violent gun-toting pirates. Nor would they have any protection from being invaded by another country.

      But let's talk reality, if everything fell through and they did establish this heaven for free internet, what's to stop our governments from enforcing ISPs to block IP's from the island?
    • GenericNumber1, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7@Lixie:
      net neutrality :D
  • Urusai, on 10/29/2007, -0/+17I will gladly exchange my citizenship for Sealand, or, preferably "Pirate Land", citizenship. Yarrr! But only if the official currency is gold dubloons.
    • OBKenobi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+36Considering who you're referring to, the official currency will probably be Paypal.
  • firsttube, on 10/12/2007, -4/+9they should start a fundable! http://www.fundable.org/
  • PuppyCheese, on 10/12/2007, -1/+12so they throw a few servers on the island......the TPB guys can be anywhere. Although I'd definitely spend some time there if I had my own country. Anyone else have the life-long fantasy of buying a country and starting your own cult?
    • wounded625, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3i thought about it.
      i would take a few shotguns to canada and say this island is ours, you cant have it.
      instant country.
  • Nick22, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3This is awsome. Iv always wanted to buy an island and declare it my own country :) Guess TPB beat me to it
  • theRIAA, on 10/29/2007, -9/+2*evil eye*
  • empyreal, on 10/29/2007, -2/+5I read a ton about sealand, its a little bit of a grey area. Read the Wiki on it. They are entertaining bids in the 8 figure range ...
  • makbryan2, on 10/20/2007, -0/+21They better have a Pirate Army or else they'll be invaded by the RIAA Militia. NATO wouldn't save them.
    • Atomic1fire, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8Are they gonna change the domain ending to .sl
    • dagr8tim, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Where are the enlistment papers???? I'll stand in line to sign up.

      Maybe the army will get big enough that we can effect afew 'Regime Changes.'
    • oskite, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7thebay.pir

      I'd pay loads for a .pir domain.
    • pabloD, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Instead of 'majors', 'generals', etc for ranks, they could have 'bucaneers', 'corsairs', 'swashbucklers', etc.

      I'd enlist.
  • kz26, on 10/20/2007, -1/+22How's the internet connection in the middle of the ocean?
    • ericcoolls, on 10/12/2007, -0/+25surprisingly good
    • Protoss, on 10/29/2007, -0/+84Apparently some of the local fish have unsecured wifi...
    • imjustabill, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5How do you think the internets get from here to europe/asia?? Underwater cables.
    • gnosaj, on 10/20/2007, -2/+8See, the internet is a series of pipes. . .
    • iridescence, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1The current owners of Sealand used to use it to host sites that benefited from it being a tax haven. But surely the RIAA, etc. would lobby whichever country TPB connected through to close their connections down.
    • marcus4132, on 10/12/2007, -0/+21. It's not the middle of the ocean, it's a few miles off the coast of the UK.

      2. It has a datacenter with multiple redundant links, one of it's main sources of income for sealand has been it's jurisdiction, hosting for sites illegal in other countries.
  • drewhenson, on 10/12/2007, -18/+3...
  • tribalredfox, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1I wish I had been smart enough to think of this first. Not only do they get the benefit of doing virtually anything they want they're going to have the money donated to them for it.
  • Arkonnan, on 10/20/2007, -3/+20This sounds like a good idea until you consider that while they will not be bound by the laws of Sweden, they will not be afforded its protection either. As a state which is not recognized by any international body(correction, I think the Brits recognize them), what is to stop the RIAA from hiring mercenaries to sink the island or kill everyone living there? Remember, you're only a sovereign nation if you can afford to protect yourself from invaders. If the US can march upon the soil of Iraq without drawing any consequences, the guys at Pirate Bay would be easy pickings.

    The only reason that Sealand hasn't already been bombed out of the ocean despite its reputation is because it hasn't angered people powerful enough to make it happen.
    • tribalredfox, on 10/12/2007, -8/+3You really believe that if you kill someone from another nation that you won't face your own nation's legal system?
    • KJSatz, on 10/12/2007, -1/+17Well considering how many people DynCorp, Blackwater, Halliburton, and other private military companies' employees have killed in Iraq and Colombia....
    • naiku, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Disaster recovery! off-site backups. DUH
    • Ratteler, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5"...what is to stop the RIAA from hiring mercenaries to sink the island or kill everyone living there?"

      Me. Bring on the RIAA/MPAA Mercs! we'll find out if THEY blend!!!
      For citizenship and a decent salary, I'll start the PirateBay nuclear refinement program.

      Hey... if they can build an artificial island off Dubai, maybe we can expand the nation of Sealand/PirateBay.
    • sobriquet, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4If they gave me a decent (given the location) place to live and a net connection, I'd bring a rifle and stand guard. A small price to pay for people's right to download to their heart's content. Besides, I could teach in the Sealand School District in the meantime.
    • foobar5892, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3The key here is dual citizenship. If you get killed as a citizen of a "legitimate" country, the ones who killed you will have problems.
    • EggNerd, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I agree, this would be a silly move for Pirate Bay (Even if they could afford it). One RIAA inspired, jet delivered JDAM and the place would be history.

      We all know that no responsible administration would do that. But considering the guys in the White House today, all bets are off.

      Pirate Bay is far better off behind the auspices of a legitimate "UN recognized" government.
  • citrusfizz, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3this might be a bad thing... yes they have no jurisdiction BUT they would be totally open for some kinda attack.. now i am not saying anyone will bomb they're country, i am saying this leaves them open more so if someone wanted to... *cough* mpaa, riaa *cough*

    edit: ***** arkonnan beat me to it
    • Protoss, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Um...the MPAA/RIAA has lawyers, not jets.
    • webkid, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3...not yet! ...or DO they? ;)
    • Scottamus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Then hell, why doesn't TPB just invade the island themselves and overtake the gov't? Makes a lot more sense than forking over $10,000,000+
  • clearrecrd, on 10/12/2007, -1/+16Quick become a lord of Sealand now.

    http://cgi.ebay.com/LORD-OR-LADY-OF-SEALAND-ROYAL-TITLE-VALENTINES-DAY-GIFT_W0QQitemZ160071084876QQihZ006QQcategoryZ88433QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
    • hypnotoad32, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Can I buy a "U n 1 v e e r $ i t y y D 1 p l l 0 0 m a a" too?
  • bigbadbyte, on 10/29/2007, -0/+32I wonder if they would accept tourists. Now how am I going to explain to my girl friend what Pirate Bay, bittorrent, and Sealand are and why we should vacation there.
    • WaterDragon, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3And how will you explain to your girlfriend that while you are in Sealand, any other guy who wants to can sleep with her?
  • Thunders, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Well this would be cool. I wonder how Thepiratebay was able to raise the 750,000,000.00 € needed? Maybe they will get a better rate.
  • Xizer, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Not a bad idea!

    But they better put a small militia there...the UK might not put up with this. But maybe if the UK knew they'd have to fight 30 or so armed men over a ***** website...they might reconsider. So far, I don't think any battles in this ridiculous war over intellectual property have ended in bloodshed. The UK might not want to be the first.

    Also, somebody from The Pirate Bay was totally browsing Something Awful when they came up with this idea.
    http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=2260933

    So this is actually Something Awful's idea, but The Pirate Bay looks like they might actually be acting on it.
    • kitwaites, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2The UK has an entire army, navy and air force. Methinks if they wanted control, they wouldn't have a huge amount of trouble.
    • prrudman, on 10/29/2007, -1/+1The UK saw off Argentina from the Falkland Islands half way round the world, I doubt Sealand would cause too much of a problem. Unless we had a Labour government at the time that is.
  • yano, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1And where will there electricity, water, and internet connection come from?

    I would really like to see this happen. That way the **AA can't do a damn thing. :)
    • Zaxcomp, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Read the wiki article on Sealand ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sealand ). Everything is already existing, water, power, internet tubes...
    • WaterDragon, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Internet via satellite dish, power....they could easily build a windmill there, or use tidal generators perhaps...but fresh water??? Unless there is an undersea well, they would have to depend on imports.
      But I suppose they could build a desalination plant, and convert sea water. That seems to be their main resource...lots of free seawater.



    • wiredclimber, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1inter tubes?
  • sfacets, on 10/12/2007, -11/+1Will their be passports? A constitution? No, because they will just own a prvate Island, which will belong so some government already out there.
  • greekgoat91, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Guess who's moving too!
  • happy_prole, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Whether this happens or not, the notion alone is opening some cans of precedented wormitude. That being said, this could remain the coolest story of the year. Snow Crash.
  • greekgoat91, on 10/29/2007, -0/+4Guess who's moving too! They better have cheap fiber.
  • ImTheDarkcyde, on 10/12/2007, -40/+2blah blah blah another pro stealing article on digg, such a predictable bunch of teens
    • Hindu_Wardrobe, on 10/12/2007, -6/+3How can you steal binary?
    • Ratteler, on 10/12/2007, -1/+13Downloading isn't stealing, extending copyright beyond every ones lifetime, crippling the public domain for corporate profit, and eliminating fair use...THAT is stealing.

      Piracy is no more illegal than dumping tea in Boston Harbor was.
  • nipuL, on 10/29/2007, -1/+16If every pirate bay user donated just a dollar, they could by several islands. And print out passports for everyone.
  • Lane, on 10/20/2007, -1/+28Sealand is about to become the worlds most highly connected country per square foot 20 times over
  • SystmBetatester, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10im definatly donating!
  • scabbers, on 10/12/2007, -10/+2To the people taking this seriously: lollylops. Lolzords.
  • devindotcom, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6That would be ***** awesome.
  • Hindu_Wardrobe, on 10/12/2007, -9/+2I would so donate if I wasn't saving up for an Xbox 360 right now...
    *Writes "donate to TPB" on To-Do-After-360-Is-Bought List*
    • sfacets, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Selfish....
    • fitchmicah, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7man, I have like $100 to buy books with next week when school starts, and I think this is good enough to afford at least $10!
    • Hindu_Wardrobe, on 10/12/2007, -5/+1But see, I have *no money*. At all. None. Zip. Nada.
      So I wouldn't be able to donate anyway...
  • DijonWolfie, on 10/12/2007, -11/+2One Minor thing here... Sealand isn't a country or a principality, this would bring TPB under the jurisdiction of the British authorities, and it would be interesting to see what the UKCS or the IIPA would do about this. Probably just mosey on in and shutdown the trackers!

    Is it April the first already?
    • twstdroot, on 10/12/2007, -2/+14see... the funny thing is that while the USA and Germany say that 'Sealand' still belongs to the UK... the courts in the UK say that it is out of the UK's control because it is in international waters.
    • aoe2bug, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1RFTA?
    • DijonWolfie, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3Erm... noooo young sir:

      Sealand is a structure WITHIN British territorial waters since 1987, built by the Military of Defence. It is for all intense and purposes a Military of Defence building in the worst case, even if it was located outside of the Territorial waters!
      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Map_of_Sealand_with_territorial_waters.png


    • diversionmary, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6Pirating is a pretty intense purpose!
    • h03024810, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Sealand is viewed by foreign governments (generally) as the UK's problem. The UK's high court officially stated it was not part of UK territory, however since then the UK's clain to territorial waters has been extended to cover the area Sealand is in. The MOD don't get automatic possession of Sealand, and it has been recognised previously that sealand was not UK juristiction, so as this has been officially recognised, it's possible there's a legal precedent for non-prosecution under british law for criminal acts performed on Sealand. But it would still be brought to court in the UK, and yes, their Internet service would be cut off to avoid an international incident. The "micronation to avoid the law" strategy doesn't work - it provides a centre for the MPAA, BPI, FACT and all the lovely eejits who run such organisations to attack. Torrents are succesful because of their distributed nature - having a centre, like Napster did, allows that centre to take the brunt of offensive manuevers against it. TPB doesn't deserve that - it's already been f***ed where it is once.
  • zombiedepot, on 10/20/2007, -0/+17Pack your bags, we're moving to Sealand.
    • sfacets, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11You say that jokingly, we're actually considering it here.... either that island or whereever they want to setup geek utopia :)
    • OBKenobi, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5Someone needs to launch a pirate satellite or two.
    • p0ss, on 10/29/2007, -1/+13why _isn't_ there a geek utopia?

      we are carrying this stupid economy!

      lets leave all the morons and move to mars!
  • istatic, on 10/20/2007, -2/+7The island is not for sale, but for transfer for 750,000,000.00 euros
    Good luck with that PirateBay.

    Prankapples for everyone!

    • ScottMaximus1, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2PRRRAAAANKKK AAAAPPPPLLLEEEE
    • Godlike, on 10/10/2007, -0/+1I bet if TPB offered them 1 million euros for 30 square feet of space, they would take it.
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