Dear Friends,
Here is a really good idea from this jschulz person. Extraordinary.
In her detailed analysis of 19th Century libertarian utopian communities, Wendy McElroy pointed out some of the consistent themes. One thing that makes such communities work, and that was in common amongst all the ones that lasted more than a year, is having a community money. Those communities which coined their own money from gold and silver lasted the longest, it seems. (Mucho kudos to Ken for minting FSW silver pieces!)
Another very important thread is having a community meeting hall. Again, the communities which lasted the longest were the ones where everyone took at least one meal a day together. Having a big barn or other building where everyone could get together and sit and talk is apparently really important, even if there is absolutely no organization to this gathering. People form their own agendas, get together, mill around, etc. What is important is to have a place where people meet.
In the context of FSW, I think part of what has made it so successful - with the nice doubling rate at the jamborees - is that the jamborees are a gathering of everyone in the group, as many as can make it.
What hasn't come up for me is any way to generate a location in Wyoming that people would go to have meetings of everyone. I had been thinking in terms of an auditorium at one of the classroom facilities the Sovereigns of the High Frontier Society is building. (News on that topic in another thread, by the way. We just got a major donor!)
But, what jschulz has suggested is a music venue. A place where people would go to hear live bands would, necessarily, have room for a large audience. (And a dance floor. You can see where I'd like that, if you came to the costume party earlier this month.) It would also be a profitable venture, if there were some decent booking agent involved. I suppose there would be a liquor license to sell booze, as Wyoming isn't that libertarian, yet. But, there's lots of money in gate and drinks and souvenirs. There may be a significant venue in Jackson Hole, and there may be concert halls of some sort in Casper or Cheyenne. Certainly the Casper Events Center is the city socialist answer to every event that needs a venue.
Having the idea and making it work are not the same thing. But, a good outdoor amphitheater, like Theater Under the Stars in Houston, might work. For year 'round action, a large indoor venue would be wanted, as concerts don't work well with frozen audiences. ;-P
Anyway, there might be a business plan in to this idea. Something to ponder. Hmmmm. <strokes beard> Hmmm.
Regards,
Jim