In the mid 2000s a new movement began in Sweden. This movement saw the birth of a new political party that would become known as the Pirate Party, and it may be the coolest political party to ever exist.

The Pirate Party was founded on the core principles of civil rights, direct democracy and participation in government, reform of copyright and patent law, free sharing of knowledge (open content), information privacy, transparency, freedom of information, anti-corruption and network neutrality. The Pirate Party is so named due to its demand that copyright laws be reformed to better promote the ideas of open content and freedom of information.

The Pirate Party built power in Sweden following its founding in 2006, and in 2009 it won two seats in the EU parliament. It would award one of these seats to Amelia Andersdotter, a former leader in the party’s youth wing, who would become the youngest member in the history of the party at the age of 23.

That’s insane to imagine. A 23-year-old woman was one of the Pirate Party’s first elected members. That’s awesome.

After these victories, the party began to spread its influence to other countries, founding both the European Pirate Party and the Pirate Parties International to help coordinate all of the Pirate Parties around the world. There are now Pirate Parties in 42 different countries, including a sparsely recognized party in the U.S.

The U.S. Pirate Party was founded in 2006, but despite its relative age — it will be 9 years old in June — the party is still not widely recognized. The party is fully recognized in California, Florida, Georgia, Massachusetts, New York, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin. There also are 12 other Pirate Parties that have not yet become official members of the Pirate National Committee, otherwise known as the coolest national committee in American Politics. The chairperson of the PNC, currently Andrew Norton, is called Captain, because the Pirate Party wasn’t already cool enough.

And if you needed any more proof that the Pirate Party was awesome, here is the opening of the PNC constitution: “For our values, we have been derided as ‘pirates.’ For our hope that every person may be free to access the whole of human knowledge, we have been called ‘pirates.’ For our belief that one need not ask permission to participate in governance, industry, culture and other aspects of society, we have been called ‘pirates.’ For our belief that citizens should not be surveilled and distrusted as if they are criminals, we have been called ‘pirates.’ For our rejection of authority and profit seeking when it does not serve the good of all people, we have been called ‘pirates.’ We reclaim this label of ‘pirate’ and abjure its derogatory, incendiary implications. We are Pirates. We stand for liberty, equality and solidarity of all human beings, and against all threats they may face.”

That is awesome. I mean a bit overdramatic, but still it’s pretty cool.

But the Pirate Party, no matter how cool it may be, actually has decent ideas, and adequately represents the change that our laws need in order to adapt to the digital age.

While the two main parties in the U.S. politics continue to fight the progression of the Internet and promoting corporate interests regarding the Internet, the Pirate Party is actually fighting for people’s rights.

So I can only hope that the Pirate Party in the U.S. will grow. One day, I hope to be able to cast my vote on a Pirate ballot. Until then, sail on fellow Pirates.

Alex Bertsch is the opinion editor for The Dakota Student. He can be reached at [email protected].