Freedom Week director, Jean-Paul Floru, was guest of honour at the ASI's launch of Madsen Pirie new book, "Freedom 101." The book is a refutation of 101 "common errors," many in daily currency. In his opening speech Jean-Paul praised the scholarship and commitment which had made the ASI so influential over the years.
Madsen then explained how the book and its title had come about. He said that not only was 101 the designation for US university introduction courses, but was also the number of the room in Orwell's "1984" where people encountered whatever they feared most. In this case it was what left-wingers feared most – the truth. The reason why each error was refuted in 300 words, Madsen explained, was that this length occupied a computer screen without scrolling. He told how a predecessor called "The Book" had similarly been designed to fit neatly into the back pocket of jeans. Ideas were important, but so was marketing.
The hope was, said Madsen, that people would use "Freedom 101" to reinforce their own views and to undermine those of others. He concluded by welcoming suggestions for further common errors for a possible "Freedom 202."
The book will be available from this weekend on Amazon at £5.95, and will at some stage be available to download from the ASI site.
