(Photo from http://porcfest.com/)
I’ve been home from the 15th annual Porcfest (the Porcupine Freedom Festival) for a few days now, and I’ve finally reintegrated back into regular California life.
I’ve been hearing about Porcfest, held in northern New Hampshire, since I started making videos years ago. Every year, people would ask me if I was going, and every year, I said no, because it’s across the country.
But this year, the organizers (who, as I would witness, produced the event very efficiently and smoothly!), contacted me to ask me to speak.
Surprisingly, they wanted me to discuss my belief that members of both the anarchist/libertarian and statist communities are in desperate need of emotional healing, a topic I have started to write about consistently here on Steemit.
That was exciting, as I’ve never given a speech on this topic and it’s become very close to my heart. I’ve heard nothing but good things about Porcfest, so I was in.
Following a redeye from L.A. to Boston last Monday evening that landed at 7:30 am, a three hour drive through the mountains of New Hampshire, and two one-hour naps once I got to my motel room at the campground, I was finally at Porcfest!
After spending six days at the festival and with the Free State Project community and taking time to reflect on it after it was over, here is what I loved the most:
Obviously, the speakers were amazing, as I’ve come to expect at events like these. Jeffrey Tucker, Ben Swann, and Patrick Byrne, the CEO of Overstock.com all offered engaging, insightful speeches about freedom, history, and moving forward.
My favorite, however, was Lynn Ulbricht, mother of Ross Ulbricht, who is serving a double life sentence for nonviolent crimes related to the federal government’s witch hunt against him for his involvement in the Silk Road, the dark web marketplace (sadly, news broke today that the Supreme Court has declined to hear his appeal).
I had seen Lynn speak before, at Anarchpulco 2016, and was just as touched then. But seeing her again, two years later, still so dedicated to fighting for her son really reminded me of the severity of his situation and not only just how much he has been targeted and made an example of, but what a visionary he is and how far forward he has pushed our cause.
His idea of a decentralized, unregulated marketplace of voluntary exchange outside the reach of government restrictions is the foundation of what many of us wish to see in the world, and though the government aggressively slammed their hammer on him, the idea lives on.
This was abundantly clear each day at Porcfest. Throughout the campgrounds, peaceful people engaged in non-coercive exchanges, selling food, crafts, CBD-infused butter coffee (words can’t describe how good it was!), and accepting competing forms of currency: cryptocurrencies, silver, and the regular old fiat dollar were acceptable, modeling a system where a centralized authority doesn’t a violent monopoly over the fundamental right of people to choose how they do business and interact with each other.
While walking down to the main event area one day, I overheard a guy, holding a cooler, telling his friend that he had forgotten it out by the campfire all night. He had left it full of water bottles, he said, and when he came back for it in the morning, some were missing...with a bundle of dollars left in their place—highlighting the respect and accountability that is possible in a free society.
People were open carrying their firearms, letting their children and pets play, and engaging in business and conversation without any interference from the State. And it was an awesome time.
On that note, I obviously have to mention the campfire, which they kept burning every night and is the best and most magnificent campfire I’ve ever been around, in part because of its burning heat in 40-something degree weather (I don’t care how many people made fun of me, I’m happy I brought my gloves). But it was also my favorite campfire ever because it was surrounded by people who respect my freedom and who seek community around these values just like I do.
Whether it’s Anarchapulco, Porcfest, or any other freedom-oriented conference, I have come to truly cherish the opportunities I have to associate with others who value peace, freedom, and other people’s rights.
We often spend so much time alone behind a screen, scrolling newsfeeds filled with frustrating posts from friends and acquaintances who don’t (or don’t want to) understand the very simple principles we see so clearly. Spending that time out in lush, green nature among the trees and sounds of frogs and birds and running water has been one of my favorite experiences out of my many years participating in this ‘movement.’
I will most definitely be back next year and may add some yoga classes to my schedule. I’ll also be posting my speech on DTube as soon as the kind people who recorded it for me send me the footage.
In short, go to Porcfest next year!
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