[pellias]

Will this work ? As mentioned, its in international waters outside the jurisdiction of the United States. Any gangster or real pirates can just board their ship and wreak havoc ?

They'll need security staff to protect the ship then ?

[anateus]

That's a commonly raised issue, largely addressed by looking at actual pirate activity. Piracy is a high-risk endeavor which is only undertaken when you have: a lot of potential victims, with very high value cargo who don't have the incentive to defend it heavily, and easy home bases.

That's why basically all piracy in the world happens around Somalia and around the Philippines. Cargo ships pass with lots of valuable cargo which is insured, and crews that that aren't going to lay down their lives to protect containers. Only very recently has piracy gotten bad enough that shipping companies have begun placing any sort of defense or deterrents on their ships. In Somalia the pirates returned to a mostly lawless state, and in south-east asia the hundreds of islands serve as good hiding places.

There aren't any pirates off the western coast of the United States, and none of the factors describe above are in place. Even if seasteads starting containing stuff that's actually very valuable, as you mention, resident would be more motivated to protect it, nor will pirates have anywhere convenient to run to.

So, are physical attacks a threat that should be considered and protected against? Yes. Is a seastead in that location with that purpose at risk of an attack by anyone but someone with some sort of ideological point? Not for a while.

[knowtheory]

I would have a more pressing concern. If this ship is outside US waters and jurisdiction, under whose law and authority would they operate?

What's stopping them from just stealing all your startup secrets? Forming rape squads? Ransoming you for your all of your family's worth?

How are disputes settled? Do they just throw people overboard?

Sure there are workable systems which would lead to some predictability in a culture/situation like this, but that doesn't and probably can't guarantee equitability and/or fairness. Sure the US government doesn't provide either equitability or fairness, but they do try their hardest to provide stability. You can count on the stupid shit that is going to go wrong to go wrong, and there is often recourse when someone does you wrong.

I don't see how you could guarantee things won't go tits up in these bizarre libertarian "paradises" a la bioshock (well, okay, minus the splicers).

[wisty]

tldr: They have to fly a flag, and follow the laws of whatever country's flag they are flying.

Under The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, they would be in a US Exclusive Economic Zone - between 12 and 200 nautical miles of the coast, so no fishing or mining without US permission. As it's not Territorial waters (up to 12 nautical miles), US law will not apply, but there are international laws against Piracy in the High Seas which do. Of course, that only protects you from people who come from another boat.

As for what happens on the boat, it's governed by the laws of the country that they choose to be registered under. Let's say Panama. But they still have to follow some legal system. Panama law is based on Spanish traditions, and is probably acceptable.

[brudgers]

Although the US Coast Guard could probably handle pirate ships of the size which could plausibly operate in the waters off the California coast, the US Navy almost certainly has more than adequate assets to address even the most well equipped pirates from a standoff range (e.g. By only using in port assets from San Diego).