Read all about the FSP’s YUUUUUGE ANNOUNCEMENT!
Free State Project Names Maine Senator Eric Brakey as New Executive Director
[Manchester, November 30, 2023] – The Free State Project, a political migration movement dedicated to attracting liberty-minded individuals and libertarians to New Hampshire, is thrilled to announce the appointment of Maine Senator Eric Brakey (35) as its new Executive Director, effective December 1st.
Senator Brakey, who will finish his third term in the Maine Senate next year and not seek re-election, brings a wealth of experience and a steadfast commitment to the principles of liberty, making him the ideal choice to lead the Free State Project into its next chapter.
“After twenty years, the positive impact of the Free State Project is undeniable. New Hampshire stands today as a granite fortress of freedom as other states succumb to the siren songs of socialism ,” said Senator Eric Brakey. “I am excited to join the Free State Project to help achieve liberty in our lifetimes with a homeland for all who wish to live free.”
In 2003, supporters of the Free State movement chose New Hampshire as their destination. Today, more than 7,000 live in the state. The Free State Project hosts two annual events to showcase the NH Advantage: Liberty Forum, an intimate, 300-person winter hotel conference, and the Porcupine Freedom Festival (aka “PorcFest”), a summer camping event with about 3,000 attendees.
Over the past two decades, Free Staters have been elected to office, served on school boards and civic committees, run independent media sites, and have started businesses, private clubs, and charities. Free Staters have been instrumental in expanding liberties in many different areas, from jury nullification and craft brewing, to cryptocurrencies and First Amendment activities. In 2023, NBC Boston broadcast an extensive, 11-part docuseries about the Free State Project called Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of New Hampshire.
“New Hampshire was just ranked Number One by the Cato Institute as the freest state in the nation overall,” said Free State Project founder and current board member, Jason Sorens, who worked on the report. “With our low tax burden, natural beauty, and policies like expanded school choice and Constitutional Carry, New Hampshire is becoming difficult to beat in terms of overall quality of living.”
As the new Executive Director, Senator Brakey will play a pivotal role in promoting these advantages to help attract more liberty-minded individuals and libertarians to the ‘Live Free or Die’ state.
Eric Brakey began in liberty politics as the Maine State Director for the Ron Paul 2012 Presidential Campaign. Elected shortly thereafter to the Maine Senate, Brakey became the youngest state senator in America at the age of 26. Across three terms, Senator Brakey authored Maine’s Constitutional Carry law, negotiated significant welfare reforms, enacted Right to Try legislation, legalized over-the-counter birth control, and oversaw market-based reforms to the state’s medical cannabis program. In 2018, Senator Brakey served as the Maine Republican nominee for U.S. Senate. Between terms of office, Eric Brakey also worked as a national spokesperson, growth strategist, and policy advisor at Young Americans for Liberty based in Austin, TX.
“Eric is a big ‘get’ for us,” said Carla Gericke, president emeritus and chairwoman of the Free State Project. “Getting a senator from another state to join the Free State Project represents, in very real terms, the value proposition of our mission, which is to concentrate the best and brightest, the smartest, solution-driven thinkers of our time, in one place: the Free State of New Hampshire. I left Silicon Valley and NYC to come build something new. I can’t wait to see what Eric does.”
In his role as Executive Director, Senator Brakey will oversee the day-to-day operations of the Free State Project, working closely with the Board of Directors, the organization’s staff, and its large, dedicated volunteer community. Brakey’s tenure promises to be a dynamic period of growth and outreach, as the Free State Project continues to attract individuals who share a commitment to individual freedom and limited government.
“Eric’s passion for liberty, coupled with his experience in public service and his time at Young Americans for Liberty, makes him an outstanding choice to lead the Free State Project,” said Gericke. “We are confident that under his guidance, the organization will continue to grow and that he will embolden a new wave of Free Staters to come help build the brightest beacon of liberty in the world, right here in New Hampshire.”
About the Free State Project:
The Free State Project is a 501c3 educational non-profit dedicated to promoting individual liberty, limited government, and free-market principles in New Hampshire. Founded in 2003, the organization encourages liberty-minded individuals and libertarians to move to New Hampshire, where they can live, work, and play while advocating for a freer society. Learn more at fsp.org.
We get kind of deep this week, and not just because Carla has a literal pain in her butt!
“Never forget that the universe is a single living organism possessed of one substance and one soul, holding all things suspended in a single consciousness and creating all things with a single purpose that they might work together spinning and weaving and knotting whatever comes to pass.” ~ Marcus Aurelius
Grasping the duality of being one unfathomable living thing–the Universe–and also an entirely separate individual within this Universe, is what is missing from the world today.
Think of yourself as one cell in a vast organism. It’s your sole job to keep your cell healthy so that the whole can be healthy as well.
When you change your intentions from trying to fix the whole organism by hubristically trying to “fix the World,” and instead focus your intentions simply on “fixing” or enhancing YOURSELF, we all together, “cell” by “cell,” individual by individual, create a better Universe.
Your one job is to do YOUR best. The rest will follow.
“If you have assumed a character above your strength, you have both acted in this matter in an unbecoming way, and you have neglected that which you might have fulfilled.” ~ Epictetus
This one is a hard lesson to learn, but learn you shall.
For example: If you constantly threaten your co-workers as a mode of operation, expect someone to eventually call your bluff.
If you didn’t have the goods, I hope you learned a few things, like:
Treat others as you wish to be treated.
It occurs to me this “Golden Rule” really only works if one is not a raging asshole.
If you ARE a raging asshole, may I suggest you go do the work so that you do not “neglect that which you might have fulfilled”.
What does that work look like?
* Understanding your place in the Universe. Which is to say, in the center of YOUR story, but not in the center of anyone else’s. In your Play of Life, you must still remember there are many characters on the stage, and it behooves you to consider their strengths too. (AKA: Know the battlefield before you pick your battles.)
* Understanding that your thoughts and deeds have a powerful impact on everything you do, and that you attract what you put out.
What are you putting out?
Me? I’m over here living free in New Hampshire, promoting health and well-being through proper nutrition, hydration, breath-work, cold therapy, exercise and good sleep.
I reversed severe anxiety, obesity, alcohol-addiction and inflammation (which is “hell” on a cellular level) through lifestyle choices and mental changes.
You can too, but first: KNOW YOUR STRENGTH 
and “STOP ASSUMING A CHARACTER”, so you can holistically become the best YOU.
Not a “pretend you.” Not an impostor. Not “a character”. But YOU, revealed through a process of self-discovery while routinely making choices that trend towards health/well-being until they become second nature.
Good habits lead to a better life!
Follow me here for tips on The Good Life!
Live free and thrive!
If you want to help people in need in Manchester directly, watch this episode, and get involved! Private charity FTW! We need trees, donations, gifts, etc. Please and thank you!
Light at the end of the tunnel! A cliché, yes, but as we enter winter, always a good mindset to carry against the literal darkness.
Figuring out your winter coping strategies is vital to being a well-adjusted Free Stater.
Here are some of mine, AKA “An African in North-East America” 
:
Proper clothing! The Scandinavians say there’s no such thing as cold weather, only improper clothing. Woolen socks, silk undergarments, good gloves and hats all go a long way to making the cold days more toasty.
Get outside! I take almost daily 45+ minute walks. Yeah, you’re not going to feel like it some days, but go do it anyway. Even just around the block but hopefully farther. One of the best reasons to get a dog… built-in accountability partner! If you don’t have a pet, find someone to walk with you or who will check-in to see if you did.
Happy light! Yes, both the orange ball in the sky that you should be looking at intentionally at sunrise and sunset, but also, get an additional boost with a desktop light therapy lamp. Even 5 minutes a day will improve your mood.
Up or start taking Vitamin D. Just do it.
Meditation! A positive mindset in winter can make a massive difference. I used to get depressed when our Overlords decreed that the time change, resulting in it being dark at 4:20pm, but that was before I understood winter doesn’t get worse and worse, darker and darker, for longer and longer, but rather, instead, it starts getting lighter again before Christmas. Then it’s just the home-stretch to Spring!
If you just need a break… get away! Maybe you can’t afford to travel somewhere sunny and warm, but you can fake a summer-like experience at home. Pick your favorite beach movies, make some of your favorite summer foods, and throw a picnic on a blanket in front of the TV.
Socialize! Or nest! Remember, human contact is important, but also, for me, winter is a wonderful time to recharge my batteries, reflect on what I’ve accomplished, get projects that slipped under fresh eyeballs, catch up, cocoon, and contemplate next steps.
What do you want to accomplish in 2024?
What can you get done over the next 2 months to position yourself for success?
Is there something on the 2023 list you can still bang out? (I’m looking at you basement floor project! lol)
Is there one thing you can do for a friend that will make a remarkable difference in their lives?
Is there one lifestyle tweak you can introduce now, that if practiced routinely for the next 45 days will create a new sustainable lifetime habit? (I’m looking at you, HYDRATION.)
When winter comes, it can seem never-ending, but, as the Stoics and my Ma will say: This too shall pass.
How YOU choose to let Winter pass is, well, up to YOU!
Live mindfully free, use tricks to make life better, and thrive!
[Photo: Louis and Obi on Head Pond Trail last Sunday.]
We talk about Right-to-Know and whether updates in the law should be applied ex-post facto (probably not) and whether Human Rights should trump special interest groups that only give “rights” to some people (definitely).
Read more about the case we mention in the Union Leader: Former Claremont cop seeks to keep files secret (paywall)
This just in from the Mercatus Center: NH keeps the lead at #1 in Overall Freedom!
Thank you to all those that work tirelessly to increase the Free State’s lead. If you are a hard working, liberty minded doer, move to NH, roll up your sleeves and get involved! A lot has been accomplished, but there’s much more to still do!
Delve into the NH data HERE.
These two photos were taken THIRTY years apart. What’s my secret?
Not fussing with a beauty routine! Like, I’ve hardly ever had one beyond wearing a hat if I’m in the sun for long–thanks, Ouma! I never used eye creams because constantly pulling at the skin around your eyes seemed dumb to me if you want to avoid wrinkles. I use natural oils as my face cream. I almost never take my makeup off either. And yes, my pillowcases have constant mascara smudges. So what?
Eating right! Even at my heaviest in my late 30s and 40s (50+ pounds ago), I have never been a fan of junk food. If you’re hoping to get healthier, consider this a good yardstick: You are as healthy as the amount of days from your last drive-through fast food order. Yeah, the choices you make on how you fuel your body is like an OSHA accident waiting to (not) happen.
Living positively! Crap happens. How you respond is a choice! I was ten, in boarding school on a different continent than my parents, when I decided I would always try to look on the bright side of life. So yeah, I basically navigate through life like I’m in a Monty Python movie… because… why not?
Earlier this morning, I read the term “Mitochondriac” and I’m embracing this 100%!
When you think about yourself on a deeply cellular level, and think about how to keep your mitochondria healthy–your literal life energy source–good decision like avoiding sugar (carbs, alcohol, candy, etc.) and daily exercise become easier.
The better you treat yourself, the better you feel; the better you feel, the easier it is to treat yourself right.
Want to live free and thrive? It’s up to YOU!
Follow my page for tips on #ketorecipes #wellness and how to #nourish yourself.
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