I am enthralled with this article I found about Liberland.
Here's the article: https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16129445/citizenship-microstate-utopia-crypto-billionaires.html which seems to have some creative license. But I'm a cynic so I feel like there is a just a scam afoot - or maybe hopeful wishes of a guy and some spare land that someone will just let go of, or something, it's confusing.
The land is a 2.7 square mile in this teardrop shaped chunk of land in the middle of this image where this border get's all squirrelly. It's between Croatia and Serbia and it's not clear where it really is. I've read numerous times that if say a body shows up there, Croatia will be the one the check it out, maybe? So many maybes in this story.
I don't ever want to live there or visit, just the idea is interesting. Seems this guy claimed a piece of mud between Croatia and Serbia during generations long boarder disputes and just says "mine" and expects that to work? From what I can see there's no formal recognition. There are no buildings or infrastructure, nobody lives there including the "founder", Vit, but it's been "around" since 2015? I first saw it because it looks like Vit is selling $10,000 passports to 800,000 people? I have so many questions...
Liberland - Free Land - "To Live And Let Live"
I say it with a German accent, the guy running the show is from Czech so shouldn't be that far off. I say LEEEberland. My understanding is it would be a land of little government and no taxes - weeellll, donations for taxes. You can donate to the government but the place is made for billionaires so maybe that would work out.
Cryptocurrency is the currency
Looks like they want to deal in their own crypto currency LLD. I know there is volatility to other cryptocurrency and there's always fees for trading and using so maybe that's part of it? I don't know enough about crypto to guess and be my normal cynical self, but I know there are fees beyond donations.
No taxes (yay!) but also no police, fire, infrastructure, building codes, schools, roads, traffic control, etc?
Liberland advocates voluntary taxation and funding through donations, contributions, fees, and private enterprise.
In theory, you could have privately funded services, you could have private fire protection, private security (like contractors from the movies?), toll roads - everywhere, private schools, private hospitals, private water, electricity, sewage, how is any of this going to work? Just say you have fire protection, but your neighbor doesn't, and both buildings are on fire (because there are no codes to be out of code), does the covered house burn while they fire brigade takes care of the paid customer?
People are people
"Live and let live" is a great slogan, but rich people are as diverse as poor people but arguably more divisive and snooty, so there would be conflict. Libertarianism works relatively easily when everyone agrees to respect everyone else's rights. Let's all grab guitars, join hands and sing Kumbaya. That's not going to work. Imagine one guy opens a night club and blasts music until 4 AM while the neighbor wants to sleep. Who has more rights. Who's freedom counts better? Or like the pigs said in Animal Farm where "some animals are more equal than others". I guess if there's no police other than private security, imagine a feud blowing up into a full fledged war between two private security companies over property lines - wait, did they even think about parcels? Who manages that? That's probably donation based too.
Oh, imagine the same neighbors have the same private security company! Do they still fight, or is that some kind of clause, and THEN how do they resolve their problems? What a mess!
800,000 People on 7 Square Kilometers?
Liberland claims to have received more than 800,000 citizenship applications. Could you imagine if all 800,000 actually moved there, we'd have roughly 114,000 people per square kilometer. That's about 94 square feet of land per person, including roads, houses, businesses, and everything else. Where would the rich golf? Forget golf courses. You wouldn't even have room for a decent backyard barbecue.
I found out later that Liberland reported around 1,200 registered citizens in 2026, and nowhere near that many actually live there. Since they started this almost country in 2015 you'd think there'd be some buildings or roads or something. They say there is a building there, but is there a way to see it? Maybe it's a bunker - that'd be pretty cool.
Is Murder Legal?
So, the idea is limited government so you can do what you wanna do no matter what I guess. Great, until somebody steals your car or murders your neighbor. I know that happens, even with rich people, I've seen crime TV. Who investigates? Who arrests the criminal? Where's the courthouse? The prison? Who pays the police? Would these citizens be willing to donate to the police?
What Happens if Croatia and Serbia Go to War?
Neither Croatia nor Serbia recognizes Liberland as an independent country. It has no meaningful military, defense treaties, or internationally recognized borders. If its two neighbors ever went to war, would their armies politely maneuver around Liberland? Somehow, I doubt a Liberland passport would convince an advancing tank commander to turn around.
Does Amazon Deliver?
Maybe long-range delivery drones from Sombor? Although that creates a whole new set of problems involving international airspace and customs.
What About Criminals Who Just Leave?
Imagine a kid steals your expensive bicycle, hops across the border into Croatia, and disappears. Or better, stops right past the boarder to laugh at you - HE'S LEFT THE COUNTRY! Even legitimate countries can't simply send their officers across international borders to arrest people. They need cooperation agreements, extradition procedures, and functioning legal systems. In reality today, Croatian authorities could still prosecute crimes under their jurisdiction. But that rather defeats the idea of being independent, doesn't it?
Now Let's Talk About the Money
Liberland offers citizenship packages starting at around $10,100. And if they already say they have 1,200 citizens, that's over $10 million dollars. I'm assuming eveyone's paid that since it's for billionaires and $10k to them is like a ten cents to me - not even at the right ratio, have to split a penny.
Its published 2023 financial report claimed approximately $1.57 million in revenue and $1.56 million in expenses. That's a substantial operation, although those figures don't establish how much money its founder personally earns.
And that brings me to Vít Jedlička himself. Was he independently wealthy before starting Liberland? Is he making a fortune from citizenship sales? Is this an elaborate money-making scheme or a genuine libertarian experiment? I couldn't find reliable information establishing his personal wealth or proving that he's pocketing millions. I'd hope not. And Vit, if you're reading this (you're not) are you accepting applications for employement?
Couldn't I Just Sell Liberland Passports Too?
So can I use the sovereign citizen trick with the right to travel license plates? Or the moor nation paperwork you can buy online? If Liberland isn't recognized as a sovereign country, what's stopping somebody from printing their own Liberland passports and selling them for $100? ChatGPT says I can't and it would still be illegal unless it was clearly a novelty passport. For a country that doesn't exist. Who's real passports aren't recognized. I don't see the problem. Message me if you want a passport. $5,000 USD - cheap - half price.
So Is Liberland a Scam?
I was wondering what category to put this post. Seems really stupid - or stupidly easy to rip off rich people essentially selling them nothing. Or a dream. Either way if someone's making WAY more money than me selling nothing or a dream, then it's not-so-stupid story. Or is it just an elaborate scam? Then it should be in scams. Either way, I'm going to keep an eye on any developments (or lack there of). See if anything happens or a flash in the pan scam.