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A crowdfunding idea

Crowdfunding is one of the biggest growth areas in the hi-tech world.

Come up with a good idea, knock up a bit of a business plan that allows you to estimate costs and produce a price for the finished product then go to the Net and allow people to pre-order, donate or invest.

So far, thousands of crowd-funded projects have been floated -- some with great success, some with utter failure and some which have clearly been a fraud from start to finish.

However, it can not be denied that crowdfunding is an excellent alternative to conventional venture capital.

So far, crowdfunding has been focused primarily on "items" such as hardware, software and the like. These are the things that tech-savvy people understand and feel confident in setting their own levels of "risk" with respect to the money they may be investing.

But what about extending crowdfunding beyond "stuff"?

What about, for example, creating a crowd-funded haven for whistle-blowers?

Take the cases of Bradley Manning or Edward Snowden for example.

These guys have risked all to expose the dirty dealing of the US government and deserve better than to face a life in prison or on the run from US authorities.

I wonder how viable it would be to crowdfund the purchase of a piece of sovereign soil somewhere which would be funded by those around the world who recognise the sacrifice that these whistle-blowers make to try and preserve the rights of others.

Of course this is "pie in the sky" stuff -- one only has to look at how the US government kneecapped WikiLeaks' revenue streams when it suited them and you'll soon realise that any attempt to collect money for this purpose would be derailed very quickly.

Even if a few hundred million could be raked up to buy a small island in the South Pacific where whistle-blowers could live without the threat of extradition -- it would not take long for the USA to wade in and use military force to arrest those living there. The mere fact that such an invasion would be a violation of international law would not stop them. Any country that openly flouts the provisions of the Geneva Convention and other human rights treaties won't be stopped by other pesky aspects of international law when it wants to extract revenge against those who would dare to expose their evil deeds.

Even if the US didn't invade such an island, they'd no doubt send in "operatives" to assassinate these whistle-blowers in "unfortunate accidents" -- and then deny any responsibility. The USA is no stranger to assassinating those who it sees as enemies of the state, especially when they are in foreign countries.

Now tell me who are the bigger criminals and more deserving of imprisonment?

What a tragedy that a nation which was formed on the grounds of providing new hope for immigrants, equal opportunity for all, truth, justice and "The American Way" has decayed and lost its way to such an extent. Instead of justice they have vengeance. Instead of honesty they have corruption, deception and abuse of the laws at all levels of government and its agencies.

Al Capone for President?

Now this isn't meant to be an anti-US rant. Indeed, the vast majority of US citizens that I know are great people - just like most people the world-over. Their biggest weakness however is that they've caught the NZ disease and have also become sheeple rather than people who are prepared to stand up and fight for their rapidly disappearing rights. They are too willing to ignore the abuses of those in power and, unlike their forefathers, aren't willing to fight for what they have and once had.

Or maybe I've spoken too soon. Perhaps they are prepared to stand their ground and exercise their final constitutional right. That could explain this. Bad things may be about to happen in the USA and I believe all governments who choose to violate their citizens' rights to privacy ought to be watching very carefully.

I'm sure that here in NZ our politicians and our citizens are smart enough to avoid such things -- but then again I might just be an eternal optimist.

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