About Me

Five random facts about me:

1. My name is Katie, and I’m a libertarian from Chicago. I work for the Sam Adams Alliance, but the views represented on this blog are mine alone.
2. I graduated from Hillsdale College in 2006, where I studied history, politics, literature, and journalism. My views on politics are largely shaped by my four years there—four years of studying history, the principles of economics, and how government growth over time has ruined everything.
3. I have developed somewhat of a reputation among friends as a “Human Dictaphone” because I can remember and repeat conversations, funny quotes, and even entire TV shows verbatim. I have been known to play entire episodes of Friends and large chunks of Orange County in my head—it’s a real gift when I’m in a boring meeting or my mp3 player (NOT an iPod*) runs out of battery power on the bus ride home.
*4. I hate Apple. (The company, not the fruit. Or, really, more often, the Apple users—fanboys, if you will. Ones like this guy.)
5. My favorite desk possession is my Dwight bobblehead.

About Go Free Yourself

I have a confession to make.

I don’t really read a lot of blogs. And by not “a lot,” I mean almost none. I think they’re great, I know how they work, I think their impact is awesome, and so on–-but I just haven’t maintained obsessive readership of any.

Except for one.

Go Fug Yourself is my all-time favorite blog. It’s, bar none, my most visited website. I love it. If you’re unfamiliar with the concept, allow me to brief you: the Fug Girls (Jessica Morgan and Heather Cocks) take to task celebrities who, for all their fortunes and fashion-forwardness, often show up in public wearing the most bizarre–-or fugly (frightfully ugly)–-combinations of clothing. It’s hysterical.

As you’ve undoubtedly ascertained by now, Go Fug Yourself is my inspiration for this blog. When I was trying to figure out the purpose and the name for this blog, I thought to myself, “what kinds of blogs do I read and why?” And while I was slightly embarrassed to admit that my one most visited site is one that chronicles celebrity fashion mishaps (instead of, oh, discussing important political issues or something), I realized that my favorite kind of blogging is similar to what the Fug Girls do.

You see, the Fug Girls believe this fashion-challenged celebrities should know better. They ridicule them when they dress poorly, they praise them when they dress well, and they make helpful suggestions for improving (like, “invest in PANTS, not leggings”).

In a nutshell, this is what I aim to do, only in relation to politics. You can expect to see sarcastic mockery of bad political behavior (like wasting tax dollars or passing nanny laws), praise for good behavior (like eliminating earmarks), and helpful tips/resources/suggestions for improving or for taking action to get involved–-because, after all, being a “blogivist” is not just about saying something, it’s about doing something.

And, of course, there will be plenty of links to The Onion, fun YouTube videos, and more. Go Free Yourself is a place for fun, for political discussion, and for getting involved in the movement for liberty. I hope you’ll join me.