Also from BoingBoing comes an interview with a graphic designer who worked on a project that most would find cryptic - Meta Haven: Sealand Identity Project.
However, as soon as I saw the words "Haven" and "Sealand" in the same sentence, I knew exactly what was meant (HavenCo and the Principality of Sealand, for the ignorant). There was a time where I was enarmored of the idea of creating your own country (although I hoped it would be more spacious that the abandoned helicopter platform that is Sealand). Those were idealistic times, times when it seemed possible to escape from the world and create a clean, well-lighted place.
At 1:42 on May 5, 2004, Margaret wrote:
What I want to know is how many people live on Sealand. It really isn't more than a glorified helipad. Why would ANYONE want to live there?
At 4:28 on May 9, 2004, Martey wrote:
Well, Margaret, I never really wanted to live at Sealand (which, when I first heard of it, sounded like an abandoned water park). What appealed to me was the concept of having a place where there is no government to tell you what to do, and you are the sole authority. I am not a libertarian, so I do not think such ideas are applicable in large societies, but they might work the smallest of microstates, like Sealand.
At 9:46 on May 22, 2005, Nairobi wrote:
Martey, Hope you don't mind a few questions. How many people live there? What kind(s) of folks are they (professions/socio-economic/etc.) What is "a day in the life" like? Thanks
At 1:49 on May 26, 2005, Martey wrote:
Unfortunately, I have never been to Sealand, so most of the information I know about it comes from electronic sources. Wired Magazine had a long article on HavenCo and Sealand in 2000, however, I believe most of that information is dated. Anders Jacobsen's blog noted that HavenCo was profitable in 2002 (which is not surprising, considering their prices), but an article from 2003 claimed the company was at risk for going under.
If you wanted a more personal answer, Ryan Lackey, HavenCo's former CTO might be able to help you. He seems to have been working with IT in some of the more active areas of the Middle East more recently.
The link to the interview which prompted this post seemed to have died (BetaBlog converted to less crufty URLs), so I am about to update it.