To: The Zoner Alliance

[bluntpencil2001]

Aren't Zoners against government interference in general? You know, anarchist types that don't want folk meddling?

Surely it will be bad public relations for their movement when they close a drinking establishment, 'since they didn't ask for permission'. Shouldn't it only get closed if and when it's actively and explicitly harming Zoners?

I mean, if you can legally take drugs in Zoner settlements, or sell any other sort of questionable produce, surely an enterprising Bretonian, or anyone for that matter, could move out into the Zone, just like the Zoners, and pour beer?

I imagine plenty of people from the colonies do business on Zoner turf. The majority of these people might even consider themselves Zoners. Some might not. Some, Zoner or otherwise, may still have ties back home, or may be employed by a company. They might want to open some place to drink. The whole 'do what you want' ideal of the Zoners doesn't appear to be broken anywhere. Freedom for anyone, from anywhere, to do as they like, in the one place, appears to be a keystone for the movement.

As it stands, even if there are reasonable grievances for a bar opening on their turf, it will make those closing it look bad. Firstly, they'll look hypocritical, effecting their standing politically and all that jazz. Secondly, they force the boozer market to become cornered by a select few Zoners. Now, this might be good for those Zoners, yes... but without the competition of another, perhaps BowEx run bar, prices will skyrocket for everyone, Zoners included! Sidewinder Fangs and Liberty Ales will be a million credits a pop!

Now, if the Zoners want to keep their futuristic pseudo-anarchist credentials, they might not want to start clamping down on anything too quickly. However, they may, out of character at least, wish to enact a change, and roleplay the slide into authoritarianism that can often happen in such free societies. This might not be what players think of Zoners, or what the characters want, but it may be an entertaining process.

In fact, rules and regulations on building reminds me of home, in the UK. You need planning permission to build anything. I can't see Zoner or anarchist-types having rules for pub-opening hours, or constructing buildings designed for selling drink. 'You need to file the following planning permission forms in triplicate' is something I'd expect from Bretonians!

Oh, and finally, it's just a pub. If a faction is shipping all sorts of crap to a planet, or engaging in smuggling, or whatever, they likely have warehouses to store said crap in. Ships with 5000 tons of ore or whatever needs stored someplace before selling. These warehouses are probably huge. The pub nailed onto the side of it is likely seen as a local bar where the guys that work there drink. I bet, for instance, that Junker smugglers have their own seedy dives on Manhattan, for instance. Maybe the Mollys would have separatist sympathiser pubs with names like "O'Driscoll's" on New London, too, where they sing "Sunday, Bloody Sunday" every bloody night.

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