Oddbean

12 Real World Agora Societies Agorism is a parallel society outside the control of government tyranny How can you get involved? Here’s 12 places Agorism is going down… You can see this same article with beautiful pictures here: https://simplifiedprivacy.com/realworldagora/ 1. Freedom Cells This is a networking website where you can meet people to form or join communities. It’s NOT about an internet site, it’s about the in-person. This movement is spreading globally, and already has a decent presence in Mexico and Texas. Quote: “Through building and supporting alternative systems such as local food networks, health services, mutual defense groups, counter-economies and communication networks, Freedom Cell members will be able to decouple themselves from the state and other institutions they deem unworthy of their support.” Some contacts: Derrick Broze, John Bush Website: FreedomCells.org 2. Free State Project, New Hampshire This Libertarian stronghold is an excellent place to meet like-minded people, go to amazing events, and be part of real world crypto economics. Quote: “By concentrating our efforts in one small state with a pre-existing pro-liberty culture, we are turning the tide against big government, and we’re experiencing the benefits of expanded personal and economic freedoms.” Website: https://www.fsp.org Events: PorcFest, hlibertyforum.com 3. Prospera, Hondorus Prospera is in a free economic zone, on an island off the coast of Hondorus. Technically, they follow Hondorus criminal law, but they create their own civil law. Prospera is the closest thing to private governance there is, as they charge a fee for service like security, instead of taxes. They are looking to make Bitcoin the official tender, and they’re big on Lightning. Prospera is on the island, but the mainland Hondorus politicians mouth off scary stuff about trying to seize the land back. While they could violently steal it, the previous administrations signed iron clad agreements with US billionaires, who are ready to back Prospera with legal aid. Quote: “Próspera is for builders, pioneers, and risk-takers who believe in the boundless potential of human achievement and choose to build the future we want. Our platform powers the development of new cities in special economic zones that maximize generalized prosperity and wealth creation.” -Official Site Key Contact: Erick Brimen, CEO of Próspera Website: https://www.prospera.co/ 4. Liberland Liberland is to Europe, what Prospera is to South America. In-between Croatia and Serbia, this micro-nation is a bastion of hope to liberty and focuses on Bitcoin/cryptocurrency. Pro-tyranny propaganda such as Wikipedia tries to smear it as a joke, but their claims to the land are legitimate. Liberland not only uses the land itself, but also host events on boats in the ocean. They’re building a DeFi center, and with something like a million paying e-residents, its a force to be reckoned with. I don’t accept the smear tactics, I stand with Liberland. Key Contact: Vít Jedlička, President Website: https://liberland.org 5. St Kitts, Caribbean Look at the Bitcoin.com map of accepting businesses, and you’ll see a glowing bundle of businesses. At a first glance, you’d think this massive bunch was New York City, but instead it’s a remote island in the Caribbean. This tax-friendly jurisdiction has become a hub for crypto and real world Agora economics. The inefficiency of international fiat banking system, combined with rock bottom low tax rates, has made many “average man on the street” businesses consider accepting crypto. Regular events go down on the beach, and you’re sure to meet like-minded people. 6. Bitcoin Beach, El Salvador Notice I did not put the whole country on the list, just this spot. Some will point out that El Salvador used a custodial KYC wallet to distribute government bought BTC. This is true, we don’t support that. However, we need to consider that Bitcoin got big here without the government, and having a friendly political environment adds stability to entrepreneurial efforts. It was private lightning wallets such as Bitcoin Beach (now renamed to Blink) which first grew in popularity. While I hear a lot of mixed reports about if you can really live fully off Bitcoin in the country in general, without a doubt Bitcoin Beach has to be on the list if we’re talking about crypto-agora locations. Because, it got its start by people agreeing to keep the Bitcoin economy circular and not cash out to fiat. An anonymous Bitcoin donor and Nicolas Burtey CEO of Galoy, (the lightning wallet’s tech), were very influential in helping it spread. Community Website: https://www.bitcoinbeach.com/ 7. Japan’s Bitcoin Cash Underground Markets BigV reached out to us on Session. He explained to me that in Japan, Monero isn’t sold on the exchanges. But there’s a multi-wallet protocol for BCH called CashFusion which does multi-signing SIMILAR to Monero. I thought it was interesting how they adapted the tech around the laws to still achieve the desired freedom. This group organizes on Session, but it’s all about the in-person groups to learn about privacy, encryption tools, and using Bitcoin Cash in the real world. Are you in Japan? Hit up BigV, Session ID: BigV or 052484eb5647820178cefe77cb04826ca4ea67a16176650b23c985fb98f0d53969 8. Bitcoin Jungle, Costa Rica Born out of the Golden Triangle (Dominical, Uvita, Ojochal, Platanillo, Tinamaste) area in Costa Rica, this community seeks to spread across Costa Rica a BTC lightning app with mapping features to track who accepts it. Apparently Costa Rica has more freedom than US iPhones, as the Apple store in the USA blocks access to the app, showing the danger of Big Tech as a gatekeeper for human knowledge. At the time of this article, the Bitcoin ATMs are still a work in progress. Website: https://bitcoinjungle.app/ Tyranny Twitter front end: https://nitter.net/BitcoinJungleCR 9. Monerotopia, Mexico Monero has the largest peer-to-peer liquidity you’ll find, as nobody wants to KYC for it. But that’s online “grey” markets, what about real life? The Monero Talk podcast’s annual event has an adoption alley, where the vendors all accept XMR like a bazaar. In my mind, this rings “real world Agora”. While it’s just an event, and not a permanent country, I still keep this in my mind as proof that it’s possible to convince people to accept privacy coins openly in the light of day. It isn’t just for darknets, but its a way of life. Key People: Douglas Tuman Website: Monerotalk.live 10. Bitcoin Lake, Guatemala In Panajachel Guatemala, this community looks to replicate the success of El Salvadore’s Bitcoin Beach, but with a plot twist. They’re looking to reduce pollution of a nearby lake. Instead of throwing away cooking oils and letting it rot in Lake Atitlán, they use it to power mining of Bitcoin. Watch a video via Twitter front-ends: https://nitter.net/LakeBitcoin/status/1569316198692831232 Patrick Melder leads the charge to create a circular BTC economy powered by lightning. Quote from Bitcoin Magazine, “I have seen firsthand that this project has successfully onboarded more than 60 merchants, of whom 90% are unbanked and solely accept cash and bitcoin.” Nostr Public Key: @BitcoinLake Tyranny Twitter via Front-end: https://nitter.net/LakeBitcoin 11. Sark Island, English Channel 0% Tax. No Labor Laws. This tax haven island is essentially the “Amish version” of the Caribbean. Located in the southwestern English Channel, off the coast of Normandy France, this country is so small that they use United Kingdom passports. From a complex political story, it’s now an independent country, with lax or no laws. Unlike other tax havens, which quickly turn to tech hubs, Sark has a laid back “practically Amish” lifestyle. They aren’t literally Amish, but there’s no cars. They use horses. Despite the low tech, it’s Agora because they did it without stacks of government paperwork and bureaucracy. Key Contact: Swen Lorenz Website: https://www.swen-lorenz.com/move-to-sark/ 12. AgoraDesk.com No discussion of Agora economics can happen without including the world’s most liquid marketplace for peer-to-peer transactions. This marketplace has both Monero and Bitcoin, and you can find liquidity to exchange it either way for Zelle, Paypal, cash in the mail, EU SEPA, gift cards, and even other altcoins. Hell, there’s even liquidity for Indian rupees, and a whole bunch of other countries. Although this isn’t a physical location, it makes the list because until we have complete circular economies, marketplaces like this allow us to thrive. Conclusion: Despite government propaganda and smear tactics, Agorism is alive and will continue to grow. I believe change possible. Change doesn’t come from voting, but through your actions. Help me spread this message, so more people can get involved with Agorism. And if you really want to take the plunge, visit some of the places or events on this list.