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A Free City in Honduras?

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  • Description

    FBN’s John Stossel interviews Michael Strong about his plans to build a “free city” in Honduras.

  • Duration 6:36
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And -- -- -- welfare state grows and government takes more power.

-- -- that'll change but not at the mystic is Thomas Jefferson said the natural progress of things is for liberty to yield.

And government to gain ground.

He said that years ago and he's been proven right but what if there was up.

Way to create a new kind of government government a more limited one -- Jefferson had in mind that helps.

Poor people by freeing the free market to work its magic.

A free city not too far from the United States were Americans could move.

That may happen soon -- central American country recently signed an agreement with a group of investors to build a privately runs Citi.

We'll have its own police force no income tax no sales tax no capital gains tax only.

Property tax and no federal regulations.

It's -- good to meet the man behind it Michael strong joins us now from Honduras so.

Mike Lee came in this show a year ago to discuss the idea of a free city it sounds like you've made progress.

We've made considerable progress we expect we will be able to break ground within thirty days after the Honduran government finalized -- the legislation.

I didn't find the regions and also appointing a governor for the region.

It's all already the Honduran legislature passed.

Bill authorizing the general principles a hundred.

26 to one's -- They're behind it was incredibly popular.

The congress realizes that the best hope for prosperity for Honduras is to create these special development regions.

They're modeled after the special development regions that have been so spectacularly successful in that China.

Which had -- scale special development regions such actions and also -- by which had a 110 acre region that had its own legal system that imported British common law.

To a given to Dubai international financial -- that's resulted in billions of dollars of capital flowing in.

And one of the greatest financial sinners in the world Dubai has -- real law.

-- except for in the Dubai international financial center where they realize that by importing British common law.

They could actually attract international outlook and its state -- -- there's no way they could have attracted the billions of dollars in.

Specifically financial.

Capital and financial institutions.

So they'd simply we're very practical and they took the best legal system in which to do business in this -- financial business.

Honduras through this special development regions is going to have the best kinds of legal systems for creating businesses of all sorts you're gonna you're gonna use Texas law.

We are proposing that to the perspective.

-- and governor that at defaults Texas legal system without US federal law.

It's pretty good law most American business people respect and feel comfortable Texas commercial law.

And many Hondurans feel comfortable with Texas commercial law criminal laws separate where that the red governor we'll have to determine what that is.

But we believe that Texas commercialize a good brand globally for business and that that will help attract significant capital for the project.

So you have this area it's about a 150 miles from where you are now in the capital.

And some left wing activists in Honduras say you're gonna steal land from a Honduran try.

That that's simply misunderstanding there was an earlier there have been various earlier versions of a project which were -- the region of Trujillo where these there have been problems with.

Various people taken land from indigenous tribes.

We have absolutely nothing to do that -- hundreds of kilometers away.

As a matter of principle we are buying land buying options on land actually.

For up.

From private landowners who have clear title who sell market prices and Americans are gonna go there and say -- -- -- pot factory.

There will we expect people from around the world being interest in opening factories our goal is to -- I'll be the most customer friendly government on -- We think some companies Nordstrom's provides great customer service with -- a government provided really great customer service.

Was efficient effective transparent.

That's a pitched -- a lot of businesses like.

What the politicians and Honduras changed and say enough of this capitalist experiment we're gonna take it back.

No politician wants to be against.

It's region -- successfully created jobs so even when hard left -- president was.

Briefly.

In charge of Honduras he didn't -- free zones because you don't touch something where hundreds of thousands of jobs -- at stake.

We believe -- that although the legal infrastructure including the laws against its appropriation and a requirement that a country compensated company for its appropriation -- one layer protection.

Much better is to create jobs for hundreds of thousands and millions of people.

And give them a vested stake in protecting this because their livelihoods depend on.

Well thank you Michael strong good luck to you and I should add that -- you're not just in this for the money here a libertarian who along with John Mackie and others and a group called flaw we just want to prove that this.

Works.

Well I I actually came from the left and colleges many college students were I used to think that the government was a solution markets for the problem.

Then -- actually learned economics has studied under Gary Becker Nobel laureate and a realized I was an idiot with respect economics before I studied one seller in economics.

Markets -- jobs capitalism creates jobs what's biggest problem earth.

People are -- -- -- or they don't have jobs.

It's very simple if you -- a -- properly structured free market system with good rule of law secure property rights and economic freedom.

On snorers -- hundreds of thousands and millions possibly billions of jobs.

That's the best way to -- global peace and prosperity.

I'm not passionate believer in the -- human to human humanity and I want to unpaid.

Peace and prosperity globally it's very simple John Lennon give me give peace a chance but -- create millions of jobs and we'll have a better world thank you Michael -- Plumbing.

The audiences -- tonight saw how we're doing.

So we'll look at the ultimate result of the opposite of three cities they'll -- the well there's.

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