Our guest on the Mobility Standard podcast this week is Mr. Titus Gebel, a German-born lawyer and entrepreneur who is now dedicating his life to the development of Free Private Cities, jurisdictions embedded within conventional states but operated by private companies for profit; a peaceful and voluntary alternative to the coercion-based systems of government we have today. "The defining feature of a Free Private City is that it's run by a for-profit company that acts as a government service provider, so to speak," says Gebel. In this capacity, he explains, the private company - the "operator" - offers citizens "the protection of life, liberty, and property, services that include both internal and external security, a pre-defined legal and regulatory framework, and independent dispute resolution."Interested individuals and companies enter into a citizen's contract with the operator and pay a fixed annual fee for the operator's services, instead of paying taxes."Within that framework, which is relatively limited," continues Gebel, "a spontaneous order can develop, which emerges from the voluntary activities of the citizens."Crucially, the operator cannot later unilaterally make any changes to the citizen's contract but would need the permission of the individual citizen concerned.A citizen's contract, he explains, gives the individual far better legal protections than, say, a constitution, because "there is no third-party like a majority or a parliament or a government that could infringe upon your contract."In the podcast, we also went into detail about:The latest developments in the field, with an emphasis on the ZEDE projects in Honduras;The historical precedents for Free Private Cities;The long-term ramifications of successful Free Private Cities;Technology’s role in the decentralization of political power and the rise of sovereign individuals; andWhy the European Union, which is totally opposed to special economic zones, is unlikely to survive the next three decades.Listen to this illuminating and heartening episode in its entirety by clicking the player below, or find the Mobility Standard on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.

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