Point well taken!

That's encouraging! Please invite all of us! Some won't join you, but it appears several will. To some extent, it depends on the details - climate, geographic features, abililty to come and go to visit relatives on the outside, etc.

I've lost most of my family - I'd move there in a heartbeat.

It could offer banking secrecy and a gold backed non-fiat currency where anyone could keep wealth for a price. To get a bank account there, you would have to deposit gold or silver, and it would be convertible to the local currency or back to gold upon demand. Eventually, there could be convertibility into fiat currencies if the depositors needed that, but I suspect most big nations with rapidly depreciating currencies would not want to deal with it.

most definately

Good comment. The Gulch would need to be totally secret (probably an impossibility) or able to defend itself against a sea of moochers and avaricious governments - maybe an improved version of Switzerland.

I would!

Well--there would still be pirates!

I would; and I'd trade my knowledge for the means to feed, clothe and shelter my family.

We won't be moving to any Gulch, as we have already chosen our own, and here we make stand, as best we can under the thumb of the current "system". While we love the Gulch concept of autonomy and true liberty, it will never happen -- because most people unthinkingly believe they *must* be governed.

We have our own Gulch on which we've been working for some years, living in a remote community in which (not all, but...) our "true" friends share the concept. Our homestead consists of our land and home which we will defend to our end. No, it's not the greatest, but we reside where we choose, and we continue to make it better.

Everyone either cannot move or be willing to move, to some place not of our own choosing, merely to be with a huge horde of other people, even *if* they share the commonality of Liberty.

Honestly, you know what would be an incredibly awesome idea?

Detroit is freaking bankrupt. Completely and utterly bankrupt in every way (financially and morally).

Detroit owns Belle Isle. Detroit could use some cash. Belle Isle is in the middle of the Detroit River, smack dab between mainland Michigan and Canada (like 1/2 mile from each, not exactly far).

Buy Belle Isle for a ridiculous sum of money. It's already only served by bridge, restrict bridge access to a train open for public use. Found the City-State of Belle Isle, run it as a free nation.

It's seriously an idea someone has floated, but the cronies in Detroit rejected:
http://www.commonwealthofbelleisle.com/

In all honesty, there's quite a few "islands" that would be ideal for something like this. On the other mouth of Lake St Clair, in the St. Clair River, you have the inhabited Harsens Island (sparsely inhabited, mainly a swamp), which is MUCH larger, and near a more rural part of Michigan, even though it's only about 15-20 miles by boat from Belle Isle. You also have Walpole Island that belongs to Canada, even less populated and larger. And there's a few others nearby.

Likely there's plenty of islands like this that would be ideal opportunities. I mean, offer the City of Detroit $2 billion. That's the ENTIRE BUDGET of the City of Detroit for one full year. All for a 1.5 square mile "mostly-unused-unless-you're-homeless-or-a-dealer" park.

Forsaking loved ones is an issue, but if they're not willing to stop drinking the kool aid, and live a productive life, I'll leave them to it. We all have choices, and I refuse to subsidize parasitism in any way whatever, especially with my own life. So, if they don't come with me, there will be a long good-bye.

If you enter the parameters that the Gulch is somewhere that is ideologically plausible, physically secure and technologically sophisticated and that it is possible to interact from the Gulch to the 'outside world'...I would be there.

I just have trouble believing that such a place exists. You can be physically secure (ie from invasion) within the US, but you cannot stop the ACA, EPA, NSA, IRS and other acronyms from wrecking their will upon you. You can be high tech if wealthy and/or talented people are willing to invest in the infrastructure (for payment back with interest over time, but still the infrastructure has to be upfront for survival).

I would personally need to be able to interact with Schuyler House via VPN every day and travel to the office in CA regularly to help keep the company running. (If I could get a handful of key people in the company, who are already Objectivists, to come to the Gulch with me then that model changes...but at least one of them is not going to budge until the tsunami has washed cold water to his waist level.)

I do have concerns as to the practicality of many of the people on this list. Having co-founded a company from a rather anarchistic ideological starting point, I know how well that does not work, even with honest and intelligent people in your subset of the population. The only discussions that I recall on jails and criminal law in this virtual Gulch have not impressed me as practical. Who would do this essential job?

So, bottom line: theoretically yes; practically no.

Jan

In a heartbeat. It's nearly impossible to find good schools in the 'real world.' And I'm sick to death of involuntarily donating my hard earned money to 'causes' that I completely disagree with.

I am way too old. However, Had it come along at the height of my powers, no question. One of my sons who was an avid, adventurous, and creative business man would have jumped at the chance.

I envision Burt Gummer's place in Perfection Valley, Nevada. It would have its hazards, but you'd be free from the real graboids of the world.

Thank you friend.

Count my daughter and I in. I had a dream I was in the Gulch once and I was a farmer. Apparently I have a suppressed subconscious desire to be a farmer. Hey, Gulchers gotta have something to eat!

I would. Most definitely.

The oil platform I found in a quick search is about 200x300 feet = 60,000 sq ft. If 50k sq ft is developed with 5-story structures, that's 250k sqft. If every man/woman/child gets 500 sq ft total for work, play, and residence, that's big enough for 500 people.

That seems nice but if it works they're gonna need a bigger boat.

I think a floating city would be most talealistic and ideal. Solar and abound and water already available. Add technology and shuttles to ports, what more could anyone want. I incision a floating oil rig size vessel. Maybe multiples, thus joining together or solo travel. Each could be set to self sustain its own communities.

Maybe I've said too much.

If there were non-secretive Gulches, I would visit one for vacation every year. I'm hoping within my lifetime there is at least one to choose from.

I wouldn't tell anyone if I knew of a secret Gulch, but I wouldn't want to live there.

I would only go to a Gulch populated with true Objectivist. Otherwise it would just be new place same garbage.

I'd go in a heart beat. To be part of such a group would make my life's efforts replete.