16 Tons

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Legislators in Nevada are proposing legislation to allow tech companies to create their own company owned towns. 

Needless to say, the morons suggesting this needs to read up the history, or at least listen to the damned song.

It's like they looked at the New Hampshire Town that went libertarian and was infested by bears, and said, "Here, hold my beer".

If you’ve got enough money, acres upon acres of undeveloped land and an “innovative technology,” you soon could form a new local government in Nevada.

………

According to a draft of the proposed legislation, obtained by the Review-Journal but not yet introduced in the Legislature, Innovation Zones would allow tech companies like Blockchains, LLC to effectively form separate local governments in Nevada, governments that would carry the same authority as a county, including the ability to impose taxes, form school districts and justice courts and provide government services, to name a few duties.

Sisolak pitched the concept in his State of the State address as his plan to bring in new companies that are at the forefront of “groundbreaking technologies,” all without the use of tax abatements or other publicly funded incentive packages that had previously helped Nevada bring companies like Tesla to the state.

During his speech last month, Sisolak specifically named Blockchains, LLC as a company that had committed to developing a “smart city” in the area east of Reno that would run entirely on blockchain technology, once the legislation passes.

Run a f%$#ing city on blockchain?

Yeah, like that is going to end well.

Even without the dubious history of the company town.

………

The draft language of the proposal says that the traditional local government model is “inadequate alone to provide the flexibility and resources conducive to making the State a leader in attracting and retaining new forms and types of businesses and fostering economic development in emerging technologies and innovative industries.”

It adds that this “alternative form of local government” is needed to aid economic development within the state.

Yes, by all means, let the grifters from block chain and the like dictate the form of government.

Given the dubious history of company towns, and the fact that their test case is for a company that doesn't actually make anything (blockchain, seriously), does not bode well.