On Mon, 05 Nov 2001 01:25:17 -0800, you wrote:
>On 11/3/01 5:48 PM, "Chen Yixiong, Eric" <cyixiong@YAHOO.COM> wrote:
>>
>> Someone suggested that perhaps I can set up an experimental community more
>> easily in a "ghost" town. Some of you might like to
>> consider this for your experimental societies too. Any comments?
>
>
>I actually looked into this a few years ago, as incorporated towns have very
>broad powers at their disposal in some States. However, at least in States
>where I looked it up, these towns automagically lose their incorporated
>status if their population falls below a certain number unless incorporation
>is specially enacted by the State legislature (an exemption that maintains
>status regardless of population). Therefore, most ghost towns no longer
>have legal status as a town.
>
>The State where I was most interested in was Nevada, which requires 250
>eligible voters to incorporate an area as a town and 150 voters to maintain
>incorporated status. The State of Nevada bestows the Right of Home Rule to
>incorporated townships (if they choose to exercise it -- most don't), which
>gives them surprisingly broad powers to manage their own affairs. By
>"manage their own affairs" it means that the town can provide their own law
>enforcement, courts, schools, fire departments, etc. In short, Home Rule
>usually means that the State delegates all authority to local officials to
>manage things how they wish within the region that is exercising home rule
>authority. "Home Rule" varies from State to State, with some states
>granting very broad and liberal interpretations of home rule, and other
>states essentially not granting it at all. Many of the rural western states
>have very favorable home rule structures. Nevada has a very liberal right
>of home rule that applies to incorporated townships. Idaho grants home rule
>to counties; Boise county in Idaho (which does NOT contain the city by the
>same name) is famous for being a home rule county which rarely lets Federal
>agencies operate within its jurisdiction.
>
>As I'm sure you've surmised by now, if you and a bunch of your friends take
>over the government of a home rule region in a State that grants very
>liberal and broad home rule powers, it is about as close to having your own
>country within a country as you are going to get. Or if you don't want to
>take over a home rule region, buy a big chunk of land in Nevada or similar
>and have a bunch of your friends become registered voters in your township.
>Having been in areas where the courts and law enforcement were strictly of
>the home rule variety, I can say that in those regions the law is exactly
>what the locals decide it is. Worth mentioning is that a boatload of
>exemptions to Federal laws exist if you are part of the local government in
>a number of capacities. Note that all the attendant problems of creating
>governments and power structures apply, so be careful of what you wish for;
>there are a few home rule areas in the U.S. that I can only describe as
>oppressive in nature due to a few ambitious people taking over the system.
>
>That should be enough to get the imagination churning. :^)
>
>Cheers,
>
>-James Rogers
> jamesr@best.com
The county is also a very important governmental unit in the USA.
Hence, I suggested on Cryonet that cryonicists "take over" Loving
County, Texas, pop 67. The county seat, Mentone has 20 people.
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