Defense
For as long as some have had plenty and others little, there have been those willing to use force to appropriate the property of others. Throughout the world, Governments have evolved to (among other things) enforce property rights. Out in the open ocean, flying a flag of convenience, a seasteader must take care of themselves and their own.
The appropriate method of defense depends hugely on what threats a seastead faces: Mutiny, Piracy and Fraud may all be considered threats, but must be dealt with in completely different ways.
Many issues surrounding threats and a seastead's response to them depend on the politics and ethic of the seastead in question. A pacifistic seastead would react in completely different ways to piracy and mutiny than many others. This article will not, therefore, attempt to adjudicate on "right" and "wrong" responses to various threats.
Procurement of arms may also present difficulties, and an exploration into the legal issues surrounding large-scale arms purchases needs to be explored.
Contents
Internal Threats
Mutiny
Terrorism
Biological Invasion
(infectious diseases, vermin infestation, etc)
External Threats
Potential threats can be broken down into two main categories: governmental vs. non-governmental. While the governmental threats are far more dangerous, both categories need to be addressed, especially for the layperson who is apt to focus more on pirates and small-scale criminals. Threats may also be divided into internal v. external, with internal threats including common criminals who make their way on board, but the emphasis here will be on avoiding organized large-scale attacks.
Governmental Action
Established government threats include the primary world powers: US, Russia, China, and arguably Britain and France. Also of concern is the looming possibility of world government, e.g., the growing jurisdiction of the UN. The UN Law of the Sea Treaty may be of the most relevance: should it be ratified, any manmade island or structure is to be under the jurisdiction of the nation in which it was built, or the closest nation to its location.
Inter-seastead Conflicts
Piracy
With pirates and terrorists, as with established armies, there is the threat of murder, rape, theft, human trafficking and enslavement. It is also conceivable that the pirates could attack supply boats even if the seasteads themselves are sufficiently defended. In reality, however, the threat of piracy is largely exaggerated. Most piracy occurs on a small scale: they are the equivalent of muggers at sea, and a large, people-dense seastead will not be an appealing target. A concrete-based seastead will be far harder to surmount for the average pirate than even the typical luxury cruise ship, which rarely comes under pirate attack. Large-scale piracy usually involves cargo ships, with a high ratio of cargo to crew; again, the typical seastead should not be tempting.
Defense Strategies
Agree
Pay Extortion
Passive Resistance
Active Resistance
Community
On the community level, separate or independent seasteads could agree to band together for defense, presenting a critical mass to would-be attackers. They could also contract with established land-based armies and defense groups to rent fully-crewed defense vessels, especially in the initial phases of seasteading.
Deterrence
Deterrence could involve hiring a private defense agency in combination with or funded by an aggression insurer to safeguard against or retaliate against aggressors. Presumably, arrangements could be worked out for payment to be made only after a successful counterattack were launched.
Defensive Equipment
Less lethal
Water cannon
Tasers
Microwave emitters
Sound wave emitters
Striking weapons - nunchucks, batons, etc
Incapacitants - Pepper spray, etc
Lethal
Short Range/Small arms
Pistols Semiautomatic, .40 S&W / 10mm / .45ACP class
Shotguns - 12 Ga Pump / Semi / Full variety of ammunition including beanbag, rubber ball
Intermediate Range /Small arms
Rifles- Preferably select fire assault rifles, make and model being dependent on budget. Reliability will be important because it is unlikely that there will be a gunsmith in the early days of seasteading.
Long Range / Small Arms
Machine guns
M249 Ideally modified to fire the 6.5 Grendel round
Crew served weapons
Close-range
CIWS Air and close-in point defense
Intermediate range, air defense
Sea Sparrow (type)
Intermediate range surface defense
Exocet (type)
Structural defense mechanisms
Partial or complete flooding of selected areas, up to the reversible submersibility of the entire structure
Threat surveillance and Detection
Area Radar Aerostat radar (type)
Active / passive sonar?
Training Issues
Individual Equipment and Protection
Clothing
Fire resistant clothing (shirt/trousers or jump/flight suit), gloves, head covering (balaclava), boots
Load carrying equipment
Vest with integrated pouches for ammo, water, first aid kit, etc. With armor and/or flotation
Protective Mask MCU-2/P or JSGPM or better
Night vision devices
Armor
Body armor
Helmet with face shield, integrated communications and hearing protection
Unconventional weapons
EMP
directed microwave emitters
metalstorm / flechettes
in general, use the stuff that the big militaries paid to have developed, and then couldn't use because of the bureaucracy. see steyr ACR for an example.
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