Free State Observer

A few weeks ago, when I was visiting the fam in California, my mother asked, “Why do you blog?”
To which I replied, “That’s a very good question.”

Since then, I’ve been giving that some thought. Granted, I often crack myself up writing this shite (I laugh at my jokes, whether or not anyone else gets them). And sometimes there’s a certain feeling of catharsis from getting something off my chest. But aside from that, why *am* I doing this?

Long-time readers may recall (and anyone can see on the About FSO page) that the original stated purpose of this blog was as follows:

to provide news, opinions and journals written by libertarian activists in the state of New Hampshire. Our writers are actively involved in New Hampshire politics, business and civic life. The FSO provides an insiders’ view of the growing New Hampshire libertarian community.

The predecessor to “Free State Observer” was entitled “5437 Miles to Freedom”, named for the mileage on my car after driving from Oakland, CA to Manchester, NH three years ago next month during my move to the “Free State”. The blog then migrated to the domain Free State Observer, partly as a project for a class I was doing in the Libertarian Leadership School, and partly with the intention of expanding it into a multi-writer blog with a greater diversity of styles and opinions. That idea never got far off the ground, although there are a few entries by other people in the archives. You can check out Free State Blogs , which was launched after this blog but really took that concept and ran with it.

I’ve been gruntled to receive very positive feedback from numerous people over the years, some of whom I was quite surprised to learn read this blog. But to be honest, I’m not aware of having convinced a single solitary person to join the FSP and/or move to New Hampshire based on the past 2 1/2 years of writing. Oh well.

My signature on the FSP forum, years back, was “Free your mind, and your ass will follow” (a line from a Parliament/Funkadelic song). I did free my mind, at least part of the way, and it dragged my ass to New Hampshire. I have no regrets about that. I intend to stay. However, I’m frequently befuddled by the level of, how shall I say… “irrational exuberance” expressed by almost every other Free State Project early mover I know. Check out this recent article for a few unpleasant statistics; I leave it as an exercise for the class to draw your own conclusions (or not, as the case may be).

By the way, I don’t think I ever explained the origin of my online handle “Friday”, which I’ve been using steadily for… christ… 22 years now. (I was a BBS freak before this here Internet thingie even went mainstream.) It comes from the title character of a novel by my favorite libertarian writer, Robert Heinlein, which I read at age 17 on the recommendation of the person who also taught me the word “libertarian”. It chronicles the adventures of a multitalented but mildly neurotic female secret agent. There’s quite a bit of sex and violence. Also, kittens. She winds up emigrating to a new planet, where the book ends, because she’s just too busy living her life and being happy to bother with chronicling her adventures anymore. I used to think it was a bit of an anticlimactic ending, but now I kind of get it.

I could just keep this blog going as a journal of my thoughts, feelings and daily activities. But I hate that shit. As I said in my very first post: “I know what you’re thinking… the Internet needs another blog like you need a hole in the head. Well listen… this isn’t your average blog.” I don’t want it to turn into the average blog; or even worse, just be neglected, so that people check in occasionally and find that nothing has been posted since last year (the fate that seems to befall almost every other blog I’ve ever bothered to check out). I also don’t want to be an idiot. I’m finding new ways to maximize my personal freedom and happiness, but it would be counter-productive to myself to blog about them (helLO Homeland Security, BATF, IRS, TSA, FBI, XYZ and PDQ, and thank you for your patronage! ).

Anyway, I’m not ready to “blow up the school” [random BTVS reference] just yet… although I am still reading Atlas Shrugged, and Wyatt Ellis has already blown up his oil well. Still waiting for poor dimwitted Dagny to get a clue: everyone else is leaping out of the pool, and she doesn’t understand why; she has failed to see the turd someone has launched in it that’s headed right for her. She’ll open her eyes soon; I hope you will too.

And now, let’s see what’s on Friday’s nightstand for some light-hearted bedtime reading:
Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
Crash Proof: How to Profit from the Coming Economic Collapse - Peter Schiff
The Collapse of the Dollar and How to Profit From It - James Turk & John Rubino
When All Hell Breaks Loose - Cody Lundin
How to Be Invisible - J.J. Luna
How I Found Freedom in an Unfree World - Harry Browne

Blog series finale most likely coming soon!

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When not thinking deep anarchocapitalist thoughts and compulsively listening to FreeDomainRadio, I work for a software consulting company, where almost all work is project-based. Periodically, as a project is completed (or “goes live” in the geek vernacular), the project manager sends out a company-wide email announcement about the successful implementation/upgrade/bilking (just kidding on that last one) for Client XYZ with public thank yous to Tom, Dick and Sanjay for all their hard work. One of these announcements went out a couple of months ago, for some company I’d never heard of. Here’s an excerpt:

It is with great pleasure that I announce the successful Go Live of PDQ Corporation in January. We are currently assisting PDQ with closing their books for their first month in Oracular.

PDQ specializes in the design and manufacture of electro- explosively actuated devices and gas storage and release systems for military, underwater and aerospace applications.

My initial thoughts on reading this were an inward chuckle of black-hearted glee at the unbelievably twisted Orwellianosity of “electro-explosively actuated devices”. Can’t they just say BOMBS?! Then, reading the list of names under Tom, Dick and Sanjay, I chuckled even harder when I saw my own name in the list. Now that is a comic error. Then, I thought “Hey, wait a minute…..” :-\

I did indeed work on that project. For one whole hour, I assisted a coworker. I didn’t even know which project it was for at the time (and have never met the coworker, come to think of it; much of my work is done via email), and was just given a 5-digit project code to put on my timecard after the fact. But I guess I must admit that I did something evil, if ignorantly and extremely tangentially (technically, I assisted someone who was assisting others who create stuff that other people use to do evil in configuring software to balance their checkbook). How heinous, bogus, and non-triumphant.

So far I’ve been pretty lucky, working for a succession of clients with whom I have absolutely no philosophical differences: an online job placement company (jobs are good; I like jobs!); a global travel company (basic human necessity in the modern world); a company that invented a simple industrial product so very ubiquitous, the company name is now a part of the English language; and most recently, a pretty nifty high-tech company whose products you have undoubtedly used if you’ve ever listened to a CD or viewed a DVD (and who have the coolest office art you can imagine, including an original 1968-issue Fillmore poster and whose conference room has a “Rolling Stones” theme.) But some of my officemates haven’t got off so clean. They have worked for a client in the “defense” industry, where security is so tight they’re not allowed to bring their cell phones with them because, if allowed to do so, they would surreptitiously take photos of lethal bleeding-edge (pun-intended) technology and transmit them to Kim Jong-il or MI6 or something.

What happens the day they ask me to work for Mass Murder Inc.? “That will be an interesting day.*” I like to think I will respectfully refuse.

*will these infernal Firefly quotes never end?

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Just got back from my first trip to KKKalifornia in almost two years. It hasn’t changed. I spent the first week in the East Bay attending training for work, then spent a few days visiting the fam (which I shall not discuss as it has recently come to my attention that my mom reads this blog… eep!) in the north bay.

My radio karma was definitely in effect on this trip. The day I was driving from the East Bay to the North Bay, just around the moment where I was wondering for the first of what would be many occasions why I was doing 10 mph on a multilane freeway in perfect weather during non-commute hours with no accidents nearby, the radio regaled me with California Uber Alles by the Dead Kennedys. Oh, right. I’m in CALIFORNIA. At the end of the trip, just as I was about to return my rental car, I was treated to the mellifluous sounds of my favorite Northern California homegrown band, Cake, covering Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive“, which seemed strangely apropros considering how much time I spent feeling maudlin about places I used to live, people I’ve loved and lost, yadda yadda. Then, when I’d made it back to the Free State of New Hampshire and had just crossed over the town line into my town, the radio played my favorite song by my favorite band, Kiss Off by the Violent Femmes. Which reminded me that the world’s most neglected and woefully out-of-date fan site was due to expire at the end of the month, but, overwhelmed with nostalgia, I decided to renew it for another year. Maybe I’ll turn it into a chicks-with-guns site.

I bitch and moan a lot about California, but the truth is, there are a lot of things I love about it. And considering that the human body is 65-90% water (I’m probably at the high end of that scale, considering how much water I drink on a daily basis), my adult body was made out of Calistoga Water. Also, sea salt from shark-infested Stinson Beach; dirt, bugs and grass seeds from my many hours wandering the golden hills in my youth; strawberries, grapes, artichokes and mint leaves from my parents’ backyard; pebbles and gravel embedded in my knees from running cross-country in high school; countless bottles of Sutter Home… let’s face it, I might as well have a tag that says “Made in CA” on the back of my neck.

Jack London served as bookends on my trip; on my first day released from work, I visited his statue in Jack London Square, Oakland, and said “Hey buddy”, and on my last day I visited his former ranch in the wine country. The Valley of the Moon is God’s own country in the springtime. While enjoying a nature walk amongst oak trees, golden poppies, poison oak (”Leaves of three, let it be”), rattlesnakes (”do not provoke”), and mountain lions (”may be unpredictable”), I pondered the paradox of London’s avowed love of socialism, and the fact that he was the epitome of the rugged individualist and self-made man throughout his too-short life. That led me to think of the number of people I know who call themselves libertarians, or even anarchocapitalists, but their actions tell a very different story. What’s the point of labelling yourself an anarchocapitalist if all your behavior makes you indistinguishable from a card-carrying Republican apparatchik? How can you claim to espouse a philosophy of self-responsibility while *not* acting responsibly regarding your own health, financial welfare and/or children? I don’t know; my little jet-lagged brain can’t make sense of it. But it seems to me that actions speak louder than words.

I’ll wrap up with my favorite JL quote:

“I would rather be ashes than dust! I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot. I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet. The function of man is to live, not to exist. I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them. I shall use my time.”

Very, very, very glad to be home.

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