Category Archives: Micronations

Irina Akulovich. An archive photo

MINSK, 23 December (BelTA) Belarus is a country with its own position and no one will be able to subjugate it, Director General of the BelTA news agency Irina Akulovich said on the air of Alfa Radio, BelTA informs citing sb.by.

Politicians in the post-Soviet space are influential and impactful, politicians in Europe are simply not independent. After all, everyone is well aware that Poland, Lithuania, and Ukraine are doing today what they are told to do by the United States. This dependence, the absence of their own position are obvious to everyone, she said.

Speaking about the Western sanctions against Belarus, Irina Akulovich turned to history. I think everyone knows that sanctions have a long history. A few hundred years before Christ, sanctions were imposed by Athens. Napoleon introduced sanctions against Great Britain ... This is a long-standing instrument of pressure, she said. She added that sanctions backfire. Will the United States understand it? I think not any time soon. But I believe that failed micronations like Lithuania might soon get a firsthand experience of what it feels like to be under sanctions. Let's take a look at China's statements. China said that soon American-style sanctions may be imposed on Lithuania. These sanctions imply a complete ban on the sale of Lithuanian goods or products made using Lithuanian component parts. Lithuania will not get anything from China, either. What does Lithuania's partner in the European Union, Germany, say? German industrialists say they will take their money out of Lithuania. Lithuania produces some products for them that may fall under the sanctions. So where to sell them?"

In Lithuania, as Irina Akulovich noted, people are lamenting its government's unbalanced decisions. "But today, states like Lithuania are taking a great number of such decisions. Hence, they have faced the sanctions," she said. I can't say that sanctions are a good thing. In any case, they hinder the development of a country. This is on the one hand. On the other hand, they provide an opportunity to pay attention to those industries that may have been underdeveloped and give them a boost. Look at how the dairy industry in Russia has grown since the sanctions were imposed! Sanctions have never achieved their ultimate goal. As the head of state says, we lived under sanctions in the past and we will continue to face them. It is true, we have to spend time and efforts dealing with them, which, of course, is not a good thing. Yet, we can handle it.

The Belarusian response to the sanctions was also raised during the conversation. There is the opinion that Belarus' response to the sanctions shows that Belarus is firmly on its feet and is evolving, growing, and that the country is not what it was 27 years ago. "We clearly see that Belarus is a country with its own position and they will not be able to make it toe their line," Irina Akulovich summed up.

Originally posted here:

Opinion: No one will be able to subjugate Belarus - Belarus News (BelTA)

Taiwanese businessman James Chang has been mired in a long battle with municipal authorities over what he sees as "excessive" taxes on the hotel he owns on the eastern coast of Australia.

So when all traditional legal and political means have been exhausted, what do you do?

Chang's idea, according to the Brisbane-based Courier Mail daily, is to try to turn his Rockhampton Plaza Hotel into a country of its own.

Welcome to the far-out world of micronations, mini-states that range from a personal hobby to a political stance. This unusual designation has sprung up over the decades as a solution for everything from protesting your government to wanting to issue your own banknotes to even simply being able to sing your very own self-acclaiming national anthem. A variable count suggests there are currently around 100 active micronations around the world, with more than 400 recorded in recent history.

It's unclear the chances that Chang will join the ranks, but he's vowed to write for permission to the Queen of England (Australia is part of the British Commonwealth) and/or take his case to international courts. His bid is not so surprising as estimates suggest that one-third of all micronations are located in Australia, earning the vast country a reputation as the micronations central.

But there have been others spread out across the world over the years from the Principality of Sealand, a platform floating on the North Sea to the Republic of Rose Island which was once bombed by the Italian government. Worldcrunch takes you on a tour around some of the world's more peculiar micronations.

The flag of the Republic of Parva Domus

Wikimedia

Petite intro

The self-proclaimed micronation is easy to miss: with a territory of just 0.2 km nestled in a Punta Carretas neighborhood of the Uruguayan capital of Montevideo. We know the history of the Pilgrims who first sailed the Atlantic to escape religious persecutions, and Liberia was created as a place for former African slaves to live freely The Republic of Parva Domus? Well, 140 years ago, it was established by amateur Uruguayan fishermen who wanted to have their own, handy storage unit for their fishing rods.

Big idea

The Latin inscription on the house's front, Parva Domus Magna Quies, encapsulates the nation's motto: "small house, big rest." Like any other country in the world, those who enter its grounds have to abide by the nation's Constitution. Among the centuries-old rules, citizens are forbidden to talk about touchy subjects such as politics, religion, and, yes, sports. The nation's mission is "pleasure and happiness," as proclaimed in their national anthem.

The male-only democracy also punishes any member who gets angry, by sending him in a cage before holding a trial. The defendant is allowed to have a lawyer, which isn't too hard to find. While women aren't allowed, many of the Parva citizens are lawyers, doctors or politicians.

As of today, 843,297 citizenships have been granted since Parva Domus' date of foundation, in 1878. The "day of independence", as they call it, is celebrated every year with a parade of its citizens wearing goofy costumes in the streets of Punta Carretas. At this point, if this sounds more like an odd private club or a fraternity than a micronation to you, you're not the only one.

The long platform was constructed in 1968

Wikimedia

Petite intro

Floating in the Adriatic Sea, between Cesenatico and Rimini, Italy, the Republic of Rose Island was a 400 square-meter-long platform that served mostly as a tourist attraction 11 kilometers off the Rimini coast. Constructed in 1968 in the middle of the Atlantic sea, the long platform of Bologna-born engineer Giorgio Rosa became a real republic in only 55 days, from getting its own flag and national language the Esperanto to writing an official constitution.

Big idea

Take a European climate of anti-conformism in the late 1960s, add an innovative Italian engineer, and you end up with the short-lived Respubliko de la Insulo de la Rozoj.

Sadly, it took the Italian government 55 days to decide and organize the island's destruction. After this episode, the UN changed Italy's maritime delimitation rules from 9.6 km to to 17.7 km. The small micronation was assembled on a platform that used an innovative technique that Rosa later patented.

Paddy Roy Bates claimed the platform in 1967

Flickr

Petite intro

The tiny platform of 4,000 m is located in the North Sea approximately 12 kilometers off the coast of Suffolk. Paddy Roy Bates, a British citizen & pirate radio broadcaster, ejected the radio members and claimed the platform as its own from 1967 onwards.

Big idea

This unrecognized man-made structure, has hereditary royal rulers, fantasy passports, a flag and a national anthem. It is located on a platform that was constructed during World War II as a defense emplacement, then occupied by a pirate radio station.

In August 1978, German-born Alexander Achenbach, self-proclaimed Prime Minister of Sealand, hired mercenaries to attack the micronation and took Bates's son hostage. However, he was able to retake Sealand, captured Achenbach and charged him with "treason against Sealand". He would stay imprisoned unless he paid close to $35,000. Germany had to send people to negotiate Achenbach's liberation. After the negotiation, the Bates family claimed that the diplomat's visit meant a facto recognition of Sealand by Germany.

Sealand sells "fantasy passports," not valid for international travel and in 1997, the Bates family revoked all Sealand passports issued for 22 years. This came to dismantle the international money laundering ring that had appeared by using the sale of fake Sealand passports to finance drug trafficking and money laundering. In 1987, the United Kingdom extended its territorial waters to 12 nautical miles. Sealand is now part of British territorial waters.

Georgette Bertin-Pourchet, presidente of the Rpublique and daughter of Georges Pourchet

Leo Delafontaine

Petite intro

In the dpartement of Doubs, in eastern France, the Republic of 128 km extends for 11 municipalities. In 1947, the prefect of the department of Doubs came to Montbenot and had lunch in the Htel de l'Abbaye, owned by Georges Pourchet. Jokingly, Pourchet asked the Prefect if he had a permit to enter the Republic of Saugeais. After inventing details about the fantasy republic, the prefect responded by naming Pourchet president of the Free Republic of Saugeais.

Big idea

Widow of George, president Gabrielle Pourchet took the micronation to another level by appointing a prime minister, a general secretary, twelve ambassadors and over 300 honorary citizens. Langue Saugette, a Franco-Provenal dialect, was the language of the song adopted as the national anthem, written in 1910. As what could seem a kind of recognition, the French Postal Service created a postal stamp to commemorate the Republic in 1987.

Petite intro

Established in 1981 by three Sydney teenagers, they claimed a 10 m provisional territory in the suburb of Narwee, Australia, as Atlantium's first capital. In 1999, the founder's 61-square-meter apartment became the second capital of and Concordia became the third capital of Atlantium on 2008, when the rural 0.76 km Province of Aurora, was created. In 2015, the micronation had almost 3,000 "citizens", most of whom signed up online from more than 100 countries, and have never been to Atlantium.

Big idea

Atlantium was described as a refreshing antidote to the reactionary self-aggrandizement of so many micronations by The Lonely Planet Guide to Home-Made Nations in 2006. The book highlights the micronation's progressive, liberal policies and describes it as a "secular humanist utopia."

The micronation sold stamps, coins and banknotes online and claimed to use the profit for the Empire's ongoing operations and charitable causes. Some of the political stances of Atlantium are for unrestricted international freedom of movement, the right to abortion and euthanasia. The microstate insists their citizens should be active in the political process no matter where they live.

A set of stamps from the Gay & Lesbian Kingdom of the Coral Sea Islands

Wikimedia

Petite intro

In 2004, a group of gay rights activists from Australia established the micronation as a symbolic political protest, after the government of Australia's refusal to recognize same-sex marriages. It was located in Australia's external overseas territory of the Coral Sea Islands, uninhabited islets east of the Great Barrier Reef.

Big idea

Matthew Briggs came up with the initiative to establish the "gay kingdom" during Brisbane Gay and Lesbian Pride Festival in 2003. On June 14, 2004, the activists arrived at Cato island on the Gayflower ship, raised the rainbow pride flag and declared the Coral Sea Islands an independent gay and lesbian state. A campsite at Cato named Heaven was claimed to be the capital of the micronation. The Kingdom was dissolved in November 2017 after Australia legalized gay marriage.

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Micronations, A World Tour Of 8 Bizzaro Spots Barely On The Map - Worldcrunch

Kekistan, officially the Republic of Kekistan is a country created by users on 4chans /pol/ board as the tongue-in-cheek ethnic origin of shitposters known as Kekistanis who worship the ancient Egyptian diety Kek. In late January 2017, Kekistan began widely circulating on Twitter following its promotion by YouTuber Sargon of Akkad.

Kekistan exisits as a parody of identity politics, and is all centered around a basic idea: meme freedom

-Jeff Holiday

kek means gods gift and Stan is in relation to the song Stan by the candy man

On 4chan, the name Kekistan has been suggested for various imaginary geographic locations many times since as early as December 2015, when a flag with the filename kekistan.jpg was submitted to the /int/ (international) board. On December 14, 2016, a thread regarding buying an island in the Caribbean was submitted to /pol/, to which several users suggested the land be named Kekistan.

On January 30, 2017, YouTuber Sargon_of_Akkad tweeted that shitposters meet the British govs criteria of an ethnicity, claiming he would register the group on the British census (shown below, left). After asking followers what the ethnicity should be named, he settled on Kekistani, describing the fictional group as a disparate and dispossessed people (shown below, right).

That day, the Republic of Kekistan Twitter feed was launched, declaring itself the official Twitter account of the Kekistani Republic. Within 48 hours, the feed gained over 5,000 followers. Meanwhile, the site Kekistan.com was launched, including a Kek manifesto.Meanwhile, other Twitter users began tweeting the hashtag #FreeKekistan along with jokes denouncing normies and professing their pride in shitposting.

The following day, YouTuber The New Memedia uploaded the song Shadilay under the titled The National Anthem of Kekistan. The video was subsequently removed. Meanwhile, the /r/kekistan subreddit was launched, with the description There is only one God (Kek) and Pepe is his prophet. On February 1, a page for Kekistan was created on Encyclopedia Dramatica.

On September 12, 2017, the official Bungie Twitter feed announced they would be removing a piece of gauntlet armor in the game Destiny 2 for sharing elements with a hate symbol.,

That day, Redditor TheLittleMoa submitted a post about the tweet to /r/DestinyTheGame, where Redditor xxbiohazrdxx speculated that the Road Complex AA1 legendary gauntlets were removed for containing imagery resembling the Kekistani flag.

In the comments section of the post, many Redditors mocked Bungie for thinking the flag was a symbol of hate. That day, Polygon and Kotaku published articles calling the Kekistan flag an alt-right and white nationalist symbol.

The Kekistani flag is composed on three parts:

From North to South. From East to West. Every person, nevermind the race, can shelter here from normie's sinfulness.

Anon

The main color of the flag is a shade of green known as "feels bad green".The design is said to be inspired by the flag of Portland, Oregon[citation needed].

In kekistan's history, Normies and Liberals had invaded kekistan and were at the point of taking kekstantinople, Only to be save by Donald Trump, Nigel Farrage and big man tommy .

In real life they have been in many battles with Antifa in towns like Berkeley California and Boston.

In each attempt they succeeded to hold back the Liberals against over wealming odds even to having their main general arrested during the Third battle of Berkeley At the Free speech rally. Kekistan liberated the town shortly afterwards.

We also have big navy with 400 battleships and 80 subs.

we have 400 nuke weapons.

big man Tyrone is are supreme leader.

Kek Civil War

In December 2019, a fallout between Kek YouTubers General Shay Cormac and Major General Haytham Kenway led to Kenway declaring independence and forming the new Kek Confederacy. Kenway has taken the title of "Lord Protector" to lead his new nation. The Army of the Republic of Kekistan, under Cormac, moved in to end the rebellion, but was defeated in the Battle of Kek Run on December 13-14. On December 19, a Kek Confederate naval raid on Kekstantinople was repulsed with heavy losses. The situation remains unresolved, with the Republic refusing to recognize the independence of the Confederacy, and Kenway unwilling to compromise. Stay tuned for updates.

Kekistan's entire history has been based on Right wing or libertarian Politics. Many people across the US were critizied by the left and feminists. Hundreds of people on the internet grew tired of leftist censorship and leftist insanity. A cartoon frog named pepe (created by Matt Furie) had became a center of Right wing or in some cases nazi Memes.

this led to Pepe becoming the symbol of Political Incorrectness. Even today, he is still the symbol for all of kekistan.

During the Elections, Hillary Clinton made a remark about how the alt Right was rascist. A kekistani conservitave shouted, "Pepe!" this only further brought attention to Kekistan. Further more bringing diversity of land loving Americans to form the online coalition.

as of 2019 our supreme leader glory greatest big man tyrone has resigned F

Kekistanis claim to have inherited the previous existing 4chan Space Program, so with this level of advancement they should be able to send live animals to high layers of the atmosphere. Nevertheless it's existence is not yet confirmed.[1]

Sh*tposters, mainly born in the United States of America,the glorious empire of Britain.[2]

Bir Tawil.

Because of the areas lack of natural resources, the country struggles with its economy. It also has to import water from Egypt because there are no bodies of water in the landlocked country.

The project of buying an island in the Caribbean is currently stagnant.

The largest province of Kekistan, composed mainly of Oceania islands.

The Kekistani has the world's largest military budget. In the fiscal year 2016, $580.3 billion in funding were enacted for the DoD and for "Overseas Contingency Operations" in the War on Terrorism.[6] Outside of direct DoD spending, the United States spends another $218 to $262 billion each year on other defense-related programs, such as Veterans Affairs, Homeland Security, nuclear weapons maintenance and DoD. By military department, $146.9 billion was allocated for the Department of the Army, $168.8 billion for the Department of the Navy, $161.8 billion for the Department of the Air Force and $102.8 billion for DoD-wide spending.[6] By function, $138.6 billion was requested for personnel, $244.4 billion for operations and maintenance, $118.9 billion for procurement, $69.0 billion for research and development, $1.3 billion for revolving and management funds, $6.9 billion for military construction and $1.3 billion for family housing.

we h8 cuks

Kekistan's culture mainly consists of dank memes, anime, and making fun of the left, also there all fucking weebs.

The Cult of Kek, also known as the Church of Kek, is a religion based around the worship of the ancient Egyptian deity Kek (also spelled Kuk or Keku), an androgynous God of darkness and chaos who is often depicted as a frog or frog-headed man in male form or a snake-headed woman in female form. The deity is associated with the popular 4chan slang term Kek, and is often embraced by supporters of 2016 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Practitioners are known to frequently write praise Kek, and jokingly refer to the church as a religion of peace.Adittionally, on 4chan, the character Pepe the Frog is considered a modern avatar of the diety, who uses ancient Egyptian meme magic to influence the world, often by fulfilling the wishes of posts that end in repeating numbers.

On November 27, 2015, a 4chan user submitted a post about the Egyptian deity to the /his/ (History) board on 4chan, featuring a depiction of the god as a frog-headed man.

On March 11, 2016, Redditor river_of_karma submitted an image macro associating Pepe the Frog, Donald Trump and memetic magic with the ancient Egyptian deity to /r/pepethefrog.[3]

On June 4, a Kek worship general thread was created on the /trash/ (off-topic) board on 4chan.[8] On June 25, an anonymous 4chan user submitted a post to the /r9k/ (Robot 9000) board asking if viewers had accepted lord Kek, ancient Egyptian god of darkness, into their lives?[4]

In /pol/s kek mythos, posts ending in sevens hold more weight than others, as seven is considered a lucky and/or holy number in many cultures, which increases in value for dubs and trips. Similarly, three sixes (666, the Number of the Beast) are considered to represent Satan and evilness. This received one of its highest points on June 19th, 2016, when a post reading Trump will win managed to get the 77777777 GET.[5]

On August 5, YouTuber Ganzorf uploaded a video titled Who is Kek? The Dark God Rising, which discussed the Cult of Kek.[11] On September 12, an anonymous 4chan user submitted a thread associating the Church of Kek with black magic.[6]

On September 14, Redditor alexmikli submitted a post titled TIL of the Gyptian god Kek, a god of chaos and nighttime who was represented by a frog to the /r/TIL subreddit, where it gathered upwards of 1,200 votes (93% upvoted) and 100 comments within 48 hours. The following day, a parody of the Clinton campaign blog post referring to Pepe the Frog as a symbol associated with white nationalism was created, which discussed the Kek deity and its relationship with meme magic.[7]

On September 15, The Cult of KEK Facebook page was launched.[8]

Pepe the frog is their main symbol and is usually the the first thing that comes to mind when you think about kekistan.The contereversy about pepe became so strong to the point Thant Antifa Killed over 10,000 wood frogs in protest(sad).

Culture is mainly dependent on Internet memes that are relevant to kekistan standards such as We Are Number One, Or Spongebob. They then continue to Sh*tpost The random Meme they seclected to image boards such as 4Chan and Reddit.

The official Twitter account of Kekistan: https://twitter.com/republicofkek

The official Twitter account of Kekstantinople (the capital): https://twitter.com/kekstantinople

The official Twitter account of Kekistan's Anti-fascist "Antifa" Party: https://twitter.com/kekistanantifa

The official Twitter account of the Supreme President Big Man Tyrone: https://twitter.com/BasedTyrone

View original post here:

Republic of Kekistan - MicroWiki - micronations.wiki

On November 2, Micronesia of West Antarctica celebrates the 20th anniversary of the day 21-year-old Travis McHenry decided to discover the one and a half million square miles[1.5 million sq km]of uninhabited land in western Antarctica. It is five times the surface area of Italy, so there is not much micronation, even if it is defined as a sovereign project of a few people that other countries do not approve of.

This is a place that McHenry has never visited and even intends to visit: the twentieth anniversary will actually be celebrated at his residence in the United States, from which he plans to fly the flag of his micronation. He has a cross, white on a blue background, and a white crown on the top left.

In many ways, Vestartica is similar to many other micronations of at least a hundred people who think they are somehow active in the world right now. In the sense that it is primarily established for entertainment and mostly exists on the internet, for example in Smaller version of Wikipedia: Here a whole series of history, slogans, literature, characteristics, public organization, events and curiosities are described in great detail. Often with humorous tones: the voice dedicated to the flag, for example, The country has undergone many changes since it first declared itself a sovereign state, and the first flag (This) Says, It was generally regarded as a blink of an eye, the ugliest and most confusing in the history of vexology.

In some of its features, Vestartica still remains a minor goliath micronation because it was in its early years. However, for some time now, it has been trying to be something else He said An article in a travel magazine Away, According to Westartica is now using its power for things other than dominating Antarctica. In fact, Westartica has become a non profit association for a number of years, with the main goal of raising awareness not only among citizens but also among people on issues related to climate change.

When he decided to find it twenty years ago, McHenry had not thought about charity. Born in Benton, Pennsylvania, he attended a nearby university and developed a passion for drama, after which he decided to join the Navy, which was involved in counter-terrorism intelligence operations. He read while on duty CIA World Factbook, A book published every year by the CIA, containing a wide variety of information, numbers, and curiosities about every country in the world, and he realized that no country had officially claimed much of the Arctic.

Other countries (Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, UK, Russia, US) claimed other territories, but no one seems to have done so. Already obsessed with micronation (he tried in 1996, without much success, to find one) McHenry learned a little about it, studied the Antarctic Treaty (an international treaty of 1959) and decided to send a letter to all countries claiming territories. In Antarctica, he had to tell people in the area that Westarctica would form in his head.

Also read: What law is in force in Antarctica?

No one answered, and there is no other real country that recognizes the legitimacy of West Indica. However, to the displeasure of others, McHenry continued: he wrote other letters (one that deals with the US State Department dealing with the oceans and polar circles, indicating its desire to use those areas for research and future colonization) and to create a smaller site for its micronization at the time. There was another name that sounded louder: Achayan Territory of Antarctica. Achius from an adjective that Homeric poems refer to the Greeks, because he had recently readIliad.

McHenry, who calls himself the Grand Duke of Travis in the West Indies business, did nothing to promote the Achaean Territory of Antarctica site, and spoke out. Away He recalled that the site was terrible, I still dont know how some people came to find it. But someone decided to end it and play together, collaborating on the creation of the micronational story and the imaginative and digital creation of everything that could be used to give micronation an identity.

Also read: Micronation on concrete and metal platforms in the North Sea

Although the Internet has had micronutrients before, some of them are well known and well known, and for almost twenty years things in this area have been simple. The Internet facilitated contact and collaboration between distant people interested in the project, and unleashed the idea of micronation from the actual creation or occupation of a particular physical space.

Vestartica says there are boundaries in the real world. And well A capital, An army and two colonial estates, one of them Within the United States, This was ConqueredOn October 29, 2017, the Micronation Wiki said: It has a lot in common with Westarctica because its remote, uninhabited, and unfavorable, and no one seems to care much about it.

In short, Vestartica mostly exists on the Internet, thanks to the Internet. As said Away Philip Howard, one of the worlds greatest micronation experts: Many of these stories do not point to practicality; They are symbols, performances, fantasies or aspirations that in some cases become parodies of real nations or more or less clear critiques of the concept of nation and power. Book of 2015 Atlas of Micronations Graziano Graziani, an expert on the subject, wrote in the following chapters: Fantasies in power, Protests, Against power, Dystopius.

Also read: The original story of the Isle of Roses

After the first users overtook the story of the Achaean Territory of Antarctica on the Internet, a lot happened. The island changed its name and flag because of a long series on how to handle it. It happened in 2006, for example, that McHenry, who remained in the Navy, handed over the leadership of the micronation to a then Minister of Information. Online discussions continued among micronation fans, and a time came when interest waned and Vestartica became almost inactive.

McHenry, who left the Navy in 2009, regained control of Westarthica and brought it back on track, then found a few dozen followers to follow. Over the past decade, McHenry has revolutionized many aspects of his life (changing jobs, leaving his wife and marrying a co-worker, writing books and making podcasts) and Away In 2014, he said he was about to leave Vestartica.

Instead he decided to continue it and unite West Indies Non-profit It attracts curious and passionate people with its antics and then tries to make them aware of issues related to climate change and the protection of Antarctica, especially a large part of West Indies. By raising funds in this way.

In other words, Vestartica continues to do micronation stuff in 2022 Sarah Among the organizers of the Microcon, the World Conference of Micronesia McHenry continues to be called the Grand Duke, sometimes dressed as he really was. The main focus of Vestartica, which claims to have thousands of citizens, of which 500 are active online in micronation, is now raising money, and has raised tens of thousands of dollars in recent years. Im given people something to believe, McHenry said Away I did it for a good cause. Vestartica started out for my ego and became one for the environment.

Contacted, The Honorary Consulate of Vestartica, Italy Did not answer. On Facebook, the last post on the page is from June 2020.

Read more here:

The Great Micronation of West Indica - Posted in - SwordsToday.ie

Hearing the word capital makes most people think of bustling metropolises that house millions of people, but there are also many capitals in the world that seem lightyears away from that image. The smallest capitals in absolute terms can be found in microstates and island nations. The smallest in relative terms shine a light on another phenomenon purpose-built capitals.

Vatican City leads the list with just around 1,000 inhabitants, which are all appointees of the Catholic church or their immediate family and lose citizenship once the appointment ends. The set-up of the state that is considered a sovereign nation also means that 100 percent of the Vaticans inhabitants live in the states capital, Vatican City.

Other capitals that make the list according to U.N. data are Vaduz, the sleepy town of 5,000 inhabitants that serves as the capital of Liechtenstein, or Tuvalus Funafuti, whose 7,000 inhabitants squeeze onto a palm-fringed atoll of a maximum width of 200 meters. While for some island nations, the capital city houses more than half of the population, the share is as low as 6.2 percent in Micronesias capital Palikir no wonder as the countys 113,000 inhabitants are scattered across 65 inhabited islands.

Six out of the top 8 of the worlds smallest capitals in relative terms share the trait that they were purpose-built to serve the function. The smallest of the bunch are Dodoma, a modest administrative center in central Tanzania, and Islamabad, the more flashy purpose-built Pakistani capital designed by Greek star architect C. A. Doxiadis. The two cities have so far failed to attract more than 0.5 percent of their respective countrys population. However, they represent the two major reasons for countries to rebuild a capital elsewhere: Trying to bring development to an underserved part of the country, most often inland regions, or creating a utopian city representing the countrys ideals. A third reason, appeasing competition between cities vying for the capital position, is represented by Australian capital Canberra and U.S. seat of government, Washington D.C.

Because of the sheer size of both countries, the capitals of India and China also appear on the list. With its nearly 20 million inhabitants, Beijing residents still make up only 1.4 percent of the 1.4 billion people living in China.

Except for city states and other micronations, the countries where the largest share of residents lives in the capital were Iceland (64 percent live in Reykjavik), Uruguay (around 50 percent live in Montevideo), Mongolia (48 percent reside in Ulan Bator) and Paraguay (46 are at home in Asuncion).

The list excludes non-sovereign states, states with multiple capitals and de-facto capitals.

See the rest here:

The Smallest Capitals in the World - Statista

COALVILLE, Utah. The Summit County Library is offering a unique treasure hunt activity, geocaching. For the unindoctrinated, geocaching is an outdoor treasure hunt, using GPS technology to guide participants to hidden treasures called geocaches. Players simply download the free geocaching app on their phones (iPhone & Android).

Coalville Branch Library Manager Susan Murph Murphy said in a statement, When my kids were little, they were NOT fans of hiking. Then we discovered geocaching and used it to get our kids excited to search for hidden geocaches along hiking trails. It worked like a charm! Murph had read that other libraries throughout the country had implemented geocaching programs and knew the charming town of Coalville would be a perfect fit.

The Summit County librarians worked with Joe Frazier, the Summit County Historian, to choose five important historic locations throughout Coalville. In a statement, Frazier said, It was difficult to narrow it down to five locations, actually! There are so many historic locations in town, but we chose five spots that are especially interesting.

Librarian Diane Brown caught the geocache bug and began to search for geocaches throughout Summit County to understand the activity. She said in a statement, There are hundreds of geocaches in our county; its pretty amazing. Ive become a bit of a geocaching fanatic and have pulled off the road on the way to the grocery store, just to search for a geocache!

One doesnt have to search far to find other geocaching fanatics like Chris Rock. Geo-guru Rock lives in Salt Lake City, has worked at Deer Valley for 15 years, and geocached in all 50 states plus Washington D.C. Shes geocached in the following 13 Countries:

At the behest of the State of Utahs tourism project, Utah GeoTour, back in 2016, Rock placed one near the city hall in Coalville, one near the Kamas City Hall, and even one intended to be done at night at the rodeo ground in Oakley. Theres also been one near the Rafter Bs convenience store in Wanship. She volunteers with a trip planning site for geocachers.

Rock said, I enjoy caching because of the places it takes me. Whether a mountain top, an unknown park, or something more unusual (Micronations anyone? e.g. Zaqistan, Molossia) theres always a cache to bring me there. With an interruption from the pandemic, I have been hosting a monthly caching hike for over 12 years. Its a way to get local cachers (sometimes out of towners too) together and find some caches along the trails of the Wasatch mountains. The mental challenges of solving puzzles to get the coordinates for some caches or opening clever gadget caches keep things interesting even in an urban environment.

All five geocaches within the Summit County Librarys new system are within walking distance from the Coalville Branch Library, and for those looking for a little exercise, it is a total of 6,723 steps. The geocaches are also drivable for those who prefer to drive. The librarians hope that after completing the geocache activity, people will stop in the library, then visit one of the family-owned restaurants along Coalvilles Main Street.

Kids and adults throughout Summit County are invited to participate in the Coalville Geocache Challenge, which runs June 1 through August 18, and everyone who completes the activity will be entered in a prize drawing for gift cards to local restaurants.

For more information on the Coalville Geocache Challenge, visit the librarys website or call 435-336-3070.

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Join in on the Summit County treasure hunt - TownLift

PEACOCK ORDERS EPIC SCIENCE SERIES "THE END IS NYE" WITH EMMY AWARD-WINNING HOST BILL NYE

Peacock has ordered science series THE END IS NYE, hosted and executive produced by Emmy Award winner and renowned science educator, engineer, author and inventor Bill Nye. The series is produced by Universal Television Alternative Studio and UCP, divisions of Universal Studio Group, and Seth MacFarlane's ("The Orville," "Family Guy," and "Ted") Fuzzy Door.

THE END IS NYE sends Bill Nye into the most epic global disasters imaginable - both natural and unnatural - and then demystifies them using science to show how we can survive, mitigate, and even prevent them.

Brannon Braga ("Cosmos: Possible Worlds," "Star Trek") will serve as showrunner and executive producer and direct all episodes.

Each episode takes a hell-bent dive into the mystery and reality of its threats, from viruses to volcanoes, asteroids to authoritarianism, and climate change to chemical warfare. Every worldwide catastrophe is abundant with thrills, but also hope and a way forward. THE END IS NYE offers a scientific blueprint for surviving anything that comes our way.

THE END IS NYE is produced by Universal Television Alternative Studio and UCP, divisions of Universal Studio Group, and Fuzzy Door. Seth MacFarlane and Erica Huggins executive produce for Fuzzy Door. Brannon Braga serves as showrunner, director and executive producer. Bill Nye also serves as executive producer and is represented by Nick Pampenella at N/PRJCTS. Rachel Hargreaves-Heald is executive in charge of production for Fuzzy Door.

ABOUT BILL NYE

Bill Nye is an Emmy-award winning television host, science educator, mechanical engineer, podcast host, and author who is best known for his role as the star of the timeless 90's science program "Bill Nye the Science Guy." Since 2010, Nye has served as the CEO of The Planetary Society where he has played a central role in fulfilling the organization's mission to advance space science and exploration. He is a New York Times best-selling author and has written various titles, including the recently released "Bill Nye's Great Big World of Science." Nye also hosts the "Science Rules!" podcast and is joined regularly by field experts and celebrity guests to discuss a range of scientific topics and encourage people to think differently about the world around them. He has built a career on promoting science literacy and is passionate about using science as a vehicle to inspire people of all ages to change the world for the better.

ABOUT UNIVERSAL TELEVISION ALTERNATIVE STUDIO

Universal Television Alternative Studio, a division of Universal Studio Group, is a leading supplier of successful unscripted content and formats, and creates, develops and produces a diverse slate of original programs for a variety of platforms. The studio's notable projects have ranged from the Emmy award-winning "World of Dance" (hosted and executive-produced by Jennifer Lopez) to Dwayne Johnson's "The Titan Games," as well as longtime NBC favorite "Hollywood Game Night," for which Jane Lynch has won two Emmy awards as host. "Hollywood Game Night" has been re-made in 21 territories while another UTAS hit game show, "The Wall," has been sold into 27 territories internationally. Also on the studio's slate is the crafting series "Making It," starring twice-Emmy-nominated hosts Amy Poehler and Nick Offerman, and "The Weakest Link," which was just picked up for a second season on NBC. Upcoming projects include comedy variety event series "That's My Jam," hosted by Jimmy Fallon; "College Bowl," hosted by Peyton Manning; the tiny-challenge game show "Small Fortune"; premium landmark series "The New World" from BBC Natural History Unit; as well as original talk show series "The Kids Tonight Show" from Jimmy Fallon.

ABOUT UCP

Universal Content Productions (UCP), a division of Universal Studio Group, is a best-in-class content studio that leverages the power and scale of NBCUniversal while collaborating with visionary storytellers. The studio is responsible for commercially successful and critically acclaimed scripted and documentary programming, including "The Umbrella Academy," "Battlestar Galactica," "Mr. Robot," "The Act," "Monk," "Homecoming," "The Sinner," "Suits," "Dirty John," and "Psych." UCP also creates premium docuseries such as "The Business of Drugs" and "A Wilderness of Error." The studio's podcast platform, UCP Audio, produces original podcasts such as "The Lost Kids" and the upcoming "The Followers: House of Prayer," while its comic book extension, UCP Graphic, develops and publishes original comic books, including the upcoming "Proctor Valley Road."

ABOUT FUZZY DOOR

Led by writer, director and producer Seth MacFarlane and President Erica Huggins, Fuzzy Door is the production company behind many of today's most successful television and film projects. The company is committed to weaving a socially conscious and intellectually curious thread through projects to bring fearless, innovative and bold stories to life while maintaining their trademark sense of humor and wonder. Currently, Fuzzy Door produces the Hulu space adventure series, "The Orville," the beloved and Emmy award-winning animated series, "Family Guy," and the fan-favorite series, "American Dad!," the latter two having recently premiered its 350th and 300th milestone episodes, respectively. The company strategically built on the success 1980's "Cosmos" by producing the award-winning "Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey," which garnered 13 Emmy nominates and became a global event seen by more than 135 million people, and the most recent installment, "Cosmos: Possible Worlds," now available on Disney+. Last year, MacFarlane and Fuzzy Door signed an impressive, multi-year television deal with Universal Studio Group. Under the pact, the company is developing "The Winds of War" limited series based on Pulitzer Prize winner Herman Wouk's acclaimed American War novels; an Untitled Little Rock Nine series about Carlotta Walls LaNier, one of the first black students to attend Arkansas' all-white Central High; a TV revival of the classic 1977 adventure comedy film "Smokey and the Bandit;" TV adaptations of the dystopian sci-fi short film "Skywatch" and Elan Mastai's award-winning novel "All Our Wrong Todays," both as original series for Peacock; and the unscripted series "Micronations," the company's first nonfiction effort under its new deal. Additionally, Fuzzy Door is producing a new animated take on Norman Lear's classic sitcom "Good Times" as a series for Netflix. On the film side, Fuzzy Door has created a number of commercially successful comedies such as TED, TED 2 and A MILLION WAYS TO DIE IN THE WEST, which have collectively grossed more than $800 million at the worldwide box office. Last Fall, the company released Hulu's BOOKS OF BLOOD, the feature film based on Clive Barker's acclaimed horror anthology of the same name. Fuzzy Door is currently developing Universal's female ensemble comedy FAIRY TALE ENDING and a reimagined modern version of REVENGE OF THE NERDS for 20th Century Studios.

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Breaking News - Peacock Orders Epic Science Series "The End Is Nye" with Emmy Award-Winning Host Bill Nye - The Futon Critic

Micronation, entity that claims to be an independent state but whose sovereignty is not recognized by the international community. Micronations are distinct from microstates, such as Liechtenstein or Vatican City, whose sovereignty over extremely small territories and populations is internationally recognized.

Micronations vary significantly in form, motivation, purpose, and seriousness. The loosely defined concept of a micronation appeared in the late 20th century to describe a growing phenomenon of small-scale pretention of sovereignty. Some micronations claim a territory, usually a piece of personal property or an uninhabitable tract of land. For instance, some micronations claim as their territory Bir awl, a section of desert between Egypt and Sudan that remains unclaimed by any country. Others exist solely in concept and may possess little more than a Web site. A great number of micronations are tongue-in-cheek, such as the Conch Republic in Key West, which staged a mock secession from the United States in 1982 after the imposition of a roadblock slowed road access to the rest of the country. The roadblock was later removed, but the city continues to use the Conch Republic gimmick to bolster tourism and souvenir sales. Still others exist as a performative expression of libertarianism. Regardless of their purpose, many micronations issue citizenship along with currency, passports, or other official documentsthough these documents bear no legal or diplomatic recognition.

The term micronation is sometimes applied retroactively to certain entities that claimed sovereignty before the concept of micronation came about. The Hospitallers (self-styled also as the Sovereign Order of Malta), a chivalric order founded in the decades prior to the First Crusade in the 11th century, possesses no territory but maintains a government whose sovereignty today is recognized by the Holy See and many other Roman Catholic countries and enjoys diplomatic relations with more than 100 countries. The Caribbean island of Redonda, uninhabitable and hardly accessible, was claimed by the early 20th-century novelist Matthew Phipps Shiell (M.P. Shiel) and serves as an early example of a completely fictitious claim to sovereignty. Among the most well-known examples of micronations formed prior to the terms coinage is the Principality of Sealand, a fort in the North Sea off the coast of England. Abandoned in the 1950s by the British Royal Navy, a British man commandeered the fort in 1967, and his family has occupied it ever since.

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micronation | Law, Recognition, History, & Definition ...

George II (or George Cruickshank, if you insist on "mundane" titles) was a bright and articulate young child qualities his parents had hoped would put him on the path to a promising career in politics.

"What they got instead was me deciding to create my own country in their backyard and raising the flag of Atlantium, and being acclaimed as its first and so far only head of state," Cruickshank quips.

"Unlike many people who have similar childhood experiences, I've managed to maintain that experience throughout my adult life."

Founded in 1981 when Cruickshank was just a teenager, the Empire of Atlantium, as it is known, is a "parallel sovereign state" based in NSW, boasting its own constitution, judicial system, flag and currency.

Far from its genesis in the backyards of suburban Sydney, its "global capital" Concordia now sits on a private pastoral holding in the Lachlan Valley, and is home to a self-declared seat of government, commemorative monuments, a post office and more.

With more than 3,000 global "citizens" to its name, Atlantium's claim of sovereignty would be impressive, were it not for one minor detail.

It doesn't actually exist at least, not in the legal sense.

Born out of a desire to shrug off the shackles of the country's constitutional democracy, Australia has been home to more than a dozen different micronations, among the most in the world, including the Sovereign State of Aeterna Lucina and the Province of Bumbunga.

Ranging from well-meaning to absurd, they are not legally recognised by the Federal Government and seldom register in the national consciousness, beyond the occasional headline.

But while most go unacknowledged and thus, unperturbed by the powers that be, others are more familiar with the long arm of the law.

After a 50-year standoff, the Principality of Hutt River the country's oldest micronation announced on Monday it would be ceded back to the Commonwealth of Australia.

Hutt River, which claimed to be an independent sovereign state (though the Australian Government never legally recognised it), had long been pursued by the Australian Taxation Office.

"Anyone can declare themselves a king or queen in their own home, or declare their own nation, but doing so sits entirely outside of the law," says UNSW Scientia Professor and constitutional law expert, George Williams.

"No-one can decide to leave Australia unilaterally or stop paying tax and expect Australian law will recognise that."

On this point, Cruickshank concurs.

Declaring sovereignty doesn't entitle you to anything (at least in the legal sense), he says, and if you were planning on "dodging your taxes", expect to become well acquainted with the ATO.

So why do it at all?

For the self-appointed sovereign head of state, the goal is simple: to unite people across the globe to advocate for unrestricted international freedom of movement.

With "citizens" from Tanzania to the United States, Atlantium isn't a political party. Rather, Cruickshank likens it to "some type of sustained performance art project".

"Our message is quite serious, but we found it's easier to communicate with people if you do it tongue-in-cheek and smile on face," he muses.

"[Unrestricted movement] is the only practical way we see for addressing the vast disparity of wealth and privilege between poorer nations and those fortunate enough to be born in a country like Australia.

"There's a basic misunderstanding of what Atlantium represents, based on what most other micro-nations end up doing, which is trying to avoid paying their taxes."

Pseudo states, though often tongue-in-cheek, are seldom created in a vacuum.

Lorraine Finlay, a constitutional and international law expert at Murdoch University, believes the fruition of the internet has "opened up worldwide the possibility for nomadic micronations", like the Empire of Atlantium, to establish a larger presence than was once possible.

"They actually have moved from being more about [territorial claims] to movements that are more based on technology and getting people involved that way," she says.

Australia is the "home of micronations", adds Williams the consequence of a "really large number of personal motivations".

"I think in Australia these micronations come back perhaps to the larrikin spirit [and] the idea of thumbing your nose to authority," he says.

"What way of doing that could be better than setting up your own country in complete contravention to the idea of Australia controlling your life?

The Principality of Hutt River, for example, was born out of a stoush with the West Australian Government over wheat production quotas, while the Gay and Lesbian Kingdom of the Coral Sea Islands was established as a symbolic political protest over the perceived lack of action around same-sex marriage.

Other times, these tiny fiefdoms exist simply to prove a point as is the case of John Rudge, the "Grand Duke of Avram".

After writing a PhD thesis in the 1980s about setting up a central bank, Rudge decided to put theory into practice, issuing his own notes and coins from the self-styled Royal Bank of Avram in Tasmania.

As Rudge tells it, it was a move that earned the ire of the Government, who disputed his use of the word "bank" on the notes and took him to court (though he claims the case was ultimately dismissed).

"All I was doing was making a point... It was about proving my thesis," he says. "They [the government] run by the power of a gun."

While a picture may tell a thousand words, in the case of Paul Delprat, the message is far more succinct: monarch.

Draped in a regal robes with a crown to boot, the self-appointed Prince of the Principality of Wy certainly knows how to talk the talk and walk the walk.

Frustrated by a long-standing council dispute over the construction of a driveway, Delprat seceded in 2004 not from the Commonwealth, but rather, his affluent harbourside suburb of Mosman, in Sydney.

"I believe it's important for people to feel they can have some degree of independence, even if it's imaginary," Delprat laughs.

"Like Ned Kelly, I hate the idea of injustice and unfairness... there are many ways of fighting it, and one of those ways is by laughing at it."

Affable and quick-witted, Delprat likens his pseudo state to the theatre ("Even Hamlet was a prince," he muses).

His "kingdom", plastered with royal paraphernalia, is more art installation than micro-nation an eccentric form of protest over a seemingly innocuous council squabble.

The Mosman Council, to their credit, met Delprat's tongue-in-cheek fight with their own brand of humour in a "formal ceremony" at council chambers, they "graciously accepted" the secession of the Principality of Wy (his own home).

And while he is yet to reach a resolution on the driveway debacle and continues to pay council rates (or "tributes", as he calls them), he believes there is a clear role for micronations in Australia.

"I think the very essence of democracy is plurality, lots of points of view, people arguing, disputation, reasoning to each other," he says

"When everyone is thinking the same, and following the same rules, it makes for a very boring society.

"What a wonderful society we live in that we put up with people like me."

While it would be easy to relegate micronations to the realms of satire, embedded in its very fabric is a strong history of Indigenous nationhood.

Murrawarri Republic, an Aboriginal micronation, declared independence in 2013, with its founders demanding a treaty between the Murrawarri nation and the Crown of Great Britain.

Likewise, the Yidindji Tribal Nation in Far North Queensland, which renounced its legal ties in 2014, hopes to enter into a memorandum of understanding with Australia (Murrumu Walubara Yidindji, its founder, has relinquished his passport, bank accounts and Australian citizenship).

But while they may follow a similar formula to other micronations across the country, Williams cautions against drawing too many parallels.

"Indigenous peoples have a claim to sovereignty, a claim to nationhood, that predates the colonisation of Australia," Williams says.

"So those groups are saying, 'We're continuing to assert our rights'. And in their case, they've taken it to court [and] they have legal arguments they can mount.

"And even though they're rejected by the state, they're in a different category to people who, essentially for a hobby and without any foundation whatsoever, seek to declare themselves as rulers of their own land."

Love them or loathe them, if there's one thing both the legal fraternity and self-appointed monarchs can all agree on, it's that the very presence of micronations in Australia underscores the country's commitment to democratic freedoms.

In Australia, there is a sense of "let bygones be bygones", says Williams, and provided those who seek to declare sovereignty continue to "fulfil their normal responsibilities", authorities are more inclined to view the phenomenon as an "eccentric hobby".

"We do live in such a peaceful, democratic, tolerant nation," adds Finlay.

"There are a lot of places in the world where if you tried to declare yourself as a separate nation, the government simply wouldn't allow it and you'd find yourself in quite a lot of trouble."

It is a sentiment echoed by Cruickshank, who believes there are lessons to be learned from the demise of Hutt River.

"If you're thinking of starting a micro-nation in response to legal issues or a dispute with their municipality or the Australian Taxation Office, those sorts of responses are inevitably doomed to failure," he says.

"What they will do is simply delay the inevitable, and that's the lesson we can take from Hutt River."

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Australia has one of the largest number of micronations in the world - ABC News

All countries are virtual countries, according to Vt Jedlika, the president of Liberland (an uninhabited island in the Danube river between Serbia and Croatia) and his fellow leaders of the worlds micronations.

But that number is now one fewer, after Australias oldest micronation, founded in 1970 over a dispute over wheat, is no more.

The Principality of Hutt River, a popular tourist attraction founded by the self-styled Prince Leonard Casley, and never legally recognised by Australia or any other country, announced on Monday that it was rejoining the Commonwealth of Australia as a result of harsh times during the coronavirus pandemic.

At 75 sq km (18,500 acres) in area, the former self-styled principality in rural Western Australia, 517km north of Perth, is the size of Hong Kong and has a population of 26.

Hutt River seceded from Australia in April 1970 after a dispute with the state government over wheat production quotas, and later became a tourist attraction that printed its own currency, the Hutt River dollar, and stamped the passports of visitors.

But on Monday, the supporters and followers of the tiny nation received an email from Royal Hutt River Legion Major Richard Ananda Barton announcing that its current leader, Prince Graeme Casley, had decided to dissolve the Principality.

It is with much sorrow that I inform you that this will be the last Significant Days list I circulate, he wrote.

Casley confirmed the news to Guardian Australia but noted that the initial email was unauthorised.

PHR will not be continuing in such harsh times (as many others are also facing), he said.

Jedlika, a Eurosceptic politician who founded Liberland in 2015, once said its nothing but the imagination of people that creates countries. Hutt River required more imagination than most.

For 50 years, the principality existed in the strange netherworld of the unrecognised state, one of dozens around the world, never really leaving Australia but claiming to be distinct from it.

In 1977, Hutt River briefly declared war on Australia over what Casley described as then prime minister Malcolm Frasers hostilities.

It had landmarks such as Mount Secession and Lake Beginning, a memorabilia department and historical society. Described on its own website as undulating farmland well covered in places with a wealth of shrubs and glorious wildflowers in season, it was a popular tourist destination in WA.

But the micronation was forced to shut its borders to tourists in January due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Founder Leonard Casley abdicated the throne to his son Graeme in 2017, and died last year, aged 93.

Graeme Casley confirmed to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation that the property would be sold to pay a mounting debt to the previously-foreign Australian Tax Office.

Hutt River is survived by other self-proclaimed micronations within Australia, including the Empire of Atlantium and the Principality of Snake Hill and the Murrawarri Republic.

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Hutt River micronation to rejoin Australia due to coronavirus pandemic - The Guardian