LIBERTY PIRATES

Harry is SO tired from endless tasks he can't even THINK! Maybe that's the point—a busy pirate doesn't ask questions. Liberty Pirates make time to rest their brains!

Harry was just looking at the stars—not hurting anyone! But the bell rang and now he HAS to go inside. Why? "Because I said so!" isn't a real reason. Liberty Pirates question bossy bells!

Ahoy, crew! I grew apples! In MY garden! With MY seeds and MY water. Now I wanna sell them for 3 coins each! Sounds fair! You did all the work! But a captain came over and said: "You can't charge 3 coins. I say apples cost 1 coin. That's the rule!" Whaaaat? Did HE grow the apples? NO! Did HE water them? NO! Did HE do ANYTHING? NO! He just walked up and told me what to charge! That's the Price Trick! Someone who did ZERO work tells YOU what your work is worth! But I need 3 coins to buy more seeds! If I only get 1 coin, I can't grow more apples! And that's YOUR problem, not his! He gets cheap apples. You get stuck! Liberty Lesson: If YOU do the work, YOU decide what it's worth. Not some captain who did nothing! Jab: If you made a really cool drawing and wanted to trade it for 5 stickers, and someone said "No, that's only worth 1 sticker"—who's RIGHT? YOU! You made it! My apples, my price! His opinion doesn't matter! Quest: If someone tells you what your work is worth, ask: Did YOU do any of this work? No? Then shush! My work, my price! Liberty Pirates decide what their treasure is worth! #LibertyPirates #MyWorkMyPrice #FreeMarket

Ahoy, crew! Captain Fancy crashed his big fancy ship! He was sailing too fast and not paying attention! Yikes. Is he okay? Yeah. But his ship is sinking! And guess what he said? "Everyone has to give me coins to fix MY ship!" Wait WHAT? HE crashed it! I know! But he said "My ship is SO big and SO important, if I don't have a ship, it's bad for EVERYONE!" So his crash is YOUR problem now? That's what he said! We have to pay for HIS mistake! That's the Bailout Boat trick! When big captains mess up, they don't pay. They make everyone ELSE pay! But that's not fair! If I crashed MY little boat, nobody would help ME! Exactly! Small pirates pay for their own mistakes. Big captains? "Too important! Save me!" Liberty Lesson: If someone messes up, THEY should fix it. Not you! Being big doesn't mean your mistakes are everyone else's problem! Jab: If you break your toy being silly, does the whole neighborhood buy you a new one? NOPE! You learn to be careful! But big captains break stuff and WE pay? That's backwards! Quest: When someone big messes up and asks for help, ask: Whose fault is this? Why am I paying for YOUR mistake? You break it, YOU fix it! Liberty Pirates take care of their OWN messes! #LibertyPirates #YouBreakItYouFixIt #NoBailouts

Ahoy, crew! I have extra fish! My friend Lily has extra apples! We're gonna trade! Nice! Fair trade, everyone wins! But WAIT. A captain walked up and said: "You can't trade with each other. You have to trade through ME." Uh oh. The Middleman! He took my fish. Took Lily's apples. Then he gave me THREE apples and gave her TWO fish. But we BOTH had five! What happened to the rest? HE kept them! He said it's his "fee" for helping us! But you didn't NEED help! You two were doing just fine! Exactly! We WANTED to trade. We were RIGHT next to each other. Why do we need HIM? You don't! But HE wants a cut. So he makes a rule: "Go through me!" Now he gets YOUR stuff for doing NOTHING! Liberty Lesson: If two people want to trade, they don't need a middleman. When someone FORCES you to use them, ask: Why? What do THEY get? Jab: If you wanna give your friend a cookie, do you need a grown-up to hand it over? NO! You just give it! Same thing! We could trade OURSELVES. The middleman just wanted our stuff! Quest: If someone says "You have to go through ME," ask: Why? What's YOUR cut? What happens if I just... don't? Trade free, crew! Liberty Pirates don't need middlemen! #LibertyPirates #TradeFree #NoMiddleman

Ahoy, crew! Salty Sam told a HUGE lie today. He said there's a MONSTER under the ship! Everyone freaked out! Is there a monster? NO! I looked! Nothing there! So why did everyone believe him? It was SO big and crazy—nobody thought he'd make up something THAT wild! That's the Big Lie Trick! Little lies get caught easy. "I didn't eat the cookie"—Mom checks your face, sees crumbs, BUSTED! But a lie SO big, SO crazy? People think "Nobody would make THAT up!" So they believe it because it's TOO big to be a lie? Yup! Small lie = small trick. Big lie = people can't even imagine someone would fib that hard! Liberty Lesson: Just because something sounds BIG and scary doesn't mean it's true. Big lies work BECAUSE they're big! Jab: If I said "I was five minutes late," you'd check. If I said "A WHALE flew over my house!" you might think... wait, is that real?! The crazier it sounds, the MORE you should check it! Quest: When you hear something really wild and scary, don't just panic. Ask: Is this real? Who told me? Can I check? Big lies are still lies! Liberty Pirates stay calm and check the facts! #LibertyPirates #CheckTheFacts #BigLies

Ahoy, crew! A fancy pirate came to our ship. Everyone called him "The Expert." He said eating coconuts is BAD for you! Did he say WHY? He said "Trust me, I'm an expert!" But who PAID this expert to come talk? Captain Banana. He sells bananas. OHHHHH! So the banana guy paid an expert to say coconuts are bad? And now everyone buys MORE bananas? That's sneaky! That's the Expert Trick! Find a smart-sounding pirate. Pay him coins. Now HE says what YOU want—and everyone believes him! But he sounded SO smart! Sounding smart and BEING right aren't the same thing! Smart pirates can still say wrong stuff—especially if someone's paying them! Liberty Lesson: When someone says "The expert says," ask: Who's PAYING the expert? Does the expert get something if you believe him? Jab: If someone paid ME to say "Archer is the best pirate ever!"—would you believe it? I HOPE not! Same thing! Paid experts say what they're PAID to say! Quest: Next time you hear "the expert says," ask: Who is this expert? Who pays them? Do THEY win if I believe this? Experts can be wrong—or bought! Liberty Pirates think for themselves! #LibertyPirates #ThinkForYourself #FollowTheMoney

Ahoy, crew! I was reading a story about the old days. It said Captain Goldbeard was a HERO! He saved everyone! But wait—who wrote that story? Captain Goldbeard's friends! There it is—The History Book Trick! Who writes the stories? The WINNERS! And what do winners say? "We were the GOOD guys! The other guys were BAD!" But what if that's not true? Doesn't matter! If YOU write the book, YOU pick what goes in it. The stuff that makes you look bad? Oops—forgot to write that part! So the guys who lost... maybe they weren't that bad? Maybe! But they didn't get to write the story. So we only hear ONE side. Liberty Lesson: When you hear a story about the old days, ask: Who wrote this? Did THEY win? What would the OTHER side say? Jab: If your brother ate the cookies and YOU got blamed, who tells Mom what happened? If he talks first, YOU'RE the bad guy! Same thing but BIGGER! Winners talk first. Losers don't get to talk at all! Quest: Next time you hear an old story, ask: Who's telling it? What would the other people say? Is there a side I'm NOT hearing? Don't just read the story—ask who WROTE it! Liberty Pirates question EVERYTHING! #LibertyPirates #QuestionEverything #WhoWroteIt

Ahoy, crew! I was walking on the beach and I found something! A beautiful shiny shell! Nobody was there. Nobody owned it. I FOUND it! It's mine! Finders keepers! But then a captain walked over and said: "Give that to me. I'll share it with everyone. It's only fair!" Wait—did HE find it? No! Was HE looking for shells? No! Did HE do ANY of the work? NO! He was just sitting there! I'M the one who walked. I'M the one who looked. I'M the one who found it! So why should HE get to decide what happens to YOUR shell? I said "But I found it!" And he said: "Don't be selfish." Oh, the old "selfish" trick! YOU do the work. THEY want it. And YOU'RE the bad guy? Nope! Liberty Lesson: If nobody owns something and YOU find it—it's YOURS! You did the work. You get to keep it! Jab: If you find a cool rock, it's yours! If you pick a flower, it's yours! Finder did the finding! He did NOTHING and wants MY shell. THAT'S not fair! Quest: Ask your family: If I find something nobody owns, whose is it? What makes something MINE? Finders keepers! Liberty Pirates earn their treasure! #LibertyPirates #FindersKeepers #EarnYourTreasure

Ahoy, crew! Something bad is happening with my best friend Finn. The captain pulled me aside and said: "Harry, I want you to watch Finn. If he does ANYTHING bad, come tell me. You'll get a treat!" Now I feel icky. Finn is my FRIEND! I don't wanna spy on my friend! That icky feeling? That's your gut saying THIS IS WRONG. But why would the captain want me to do that? Think about it. If you're watching Finn, and Finn is watching you... are you still good friends? Or are you both scared? Scared. I'd be scared to do ANYTHING. What if Finn tells on me? And Finn is scared too. Now NOBODY is having fun. Everybody's nervous. And who's in charge of all the scared pirates? The captain! Liberty Lesson: When someone says "Tell on your friend," they're trying to break you apart. Friends who don't trust each other are easy to boss around! Jab: A good friend doesn't spy on you. And a good captain doesn't ask you to spy on your friends! That icky feeling is right. Don't do it! Quest: If someone asks you to tell on a friend, ask yourself: How would I feel if my friend did this to ME? Liberty Pirates stick together! Friends don't spy on friends! #LibertyPirates #TrustYourGut #FriendsDontSpy

Ahoy, crew! The captain made a rule. "NO COOKIES AFTER LUNCH!" So I didn't eat any. I really wanted one. But rules are rules! But THEN I saw the captain in the kitchen eating a COOKIE! After lunch! HIS rule! HE broke it! I said "HEY! You said no cookies!" And he said: "That rule is for YOU. Not for ME." But that's NOT FAIR! A rule is a rule! You met the Rule Makers! Some captains make rules for YOU that THEY don't follow. "Don't do this! Don't do that!" But watch THEM. They do whatever they want! Liberty Lesson: If someone makes a rule, watch them. Do THEY follow it? If the rule is so good—why don't THEY have to do it? Jab: Imagine your big brother says "No one touches the toys!" Then HE plays with them. You'd say "HEY!" Same thing! If you don't follow your OWN rule, it's not a real rule. It's just bossing people around! Quest: Next time someone makes a rule, watch them. Do they follow it too? Ask: "Does this rule count for YOU?" Real rules are for EVERYONE! Liberty Pirates play fair—captains too! #LibertyPirates #RulesForEveryone #PlayFair

Ahoy, crew! Something bad happened. My friends Jack and Lily were BEST friends yesterday. Now they're fighting! What happened?! The Fighting Trick! Salty Sam told Jack: "Lily said you're a smelly poopyhead!" Then he told Lily: "Jack is gonna take your toys!" But NONE of that was true! Salty Sam MADE IT UP! Now Jack and Lily are mad at each other for NO reason! Why would he do that? Look at Salty Sam now—he's playing with BOTH their toys while they fight! BINGO! He started the fight so HE could win! Jack and Lily are upset. Salty Sam is happy. HE gets the good stuff! Liberty Lesson: When two friends suddenly fight, ask: Did someone MAKE this happen? Who's happy that they're mad? Jab: Salty Sam isn't fighting. He's not upset. He's smiling while everyone else is sad! If he started it, why isn't HE in trouble? Hmm! Quest: If your friends get mad at each other, ask: Who told you that? Is it TRUE? Did someone make this fight happen? Don't fall for the Fighting Trick! Liberty Pirates ask questions first! #LibertyPirates #AskQuestions #FightingTrick

Ahoy, crew! Guess what? I made LEMONADE! Yummy, cold, delicious lemonade! I'm gonna sell cups to my friends! But wait—here comes trouble. A bossy captain says: "STOP! You can't sell that! You don't have PERMISSION!" Permission? It's MY lemonade! MY lemons. MY sugar. MY water. MY cups. I made it! "Doesn't matter! Ask ME first. Fill out papers. Pay me coins. THEN maybe I'll say yes!" But I'm not hurting anyone. People WANT my lemonade. I MADE it. Why do I need YOUR permission?! That's the Lemonade Lie! Some bossy pirates think they get to say YES or NO to everything you do—even if it's YOUR stuff! Liberty Lesson: If you made it and nobody's getting hurt, why ask a bossy captain? It's YOUR lemonade. YOUR work. YOUR choice! Jab: They SAY it's for safety. "We just wanna make sure the lemonade is good!" But really? They want CONTROL. They want to feel like the BOSS of you! Here's the secret—YOU are the boss of you! Not some captain who didn't make the lemonade, didn't buy the lemons, didn't do ANY of the work! Quest: Ask your family—if I make something and want to share it, why would someone try to stop me? YOUR work is YOUR treasure! You don't need permission to TRY! Liberty Pirates are FREE! Make stuff! Trade stuff! No bossy captains allowed! #LibertyPirates #YouAreTheBoss #FreeToTrade

Ahoy, crew! Something weird is happening. Last year ONE gold coin bought TEN apples. This year? FIVE apples. The apples didn't change—so what happened to my gold?! You got hit by the SHRINKING GOLD TRICK! It's not the SIZE of your coin—it's how much stuff it can GET. Some sneaky captains have a magic printing press. They print MORE coins out of thin air! If there's MORE coins but the same apples... your coin means LESS! "Coins are everywhere now—I want MORE for my apples!" That's not fair! You WORKED for your coin! They just PRINTED theirs! Liberty Lesson: When captains print fake money, YOUR money buys LESS. Your piggy bank isn't growing—it's SHRINKING! Not because you spent it—because THEY printed more! That toy cost five coins last year, now TEN. Did it get better? NOPE! Your coins got WEAKER. They STOLE from your piggy bank without touching it! Jab: They don't CALL it stealing—they use big fancy words so you don't notice. You saved up. They printed more. Your savings buy less. That's STEALING with a printing press! And WHO gets new coins first? Captains and their friends! They spend it when it's worth a lot. By the time it reaches regular pirates? Worth way less! First spender buys cheap. Last guy pays double! Quest: Look at something your family buys—milk, bread. Ask: "Did this cost less when YOU were little? WHY does it cost more now?" The answer is the Shrinking Gold Trick! Captains print, pirates pay—but NOT Liberty Pirates! We know the trick! #LibertyPirates #SoundMoney #ProtectYourTreasure

Ahoy, crew! Big news—today we get to VOTE! Pick who's in charge! Great, right? WRONG! Look at the choices: Captain Red or Captain Blue. That's IT. BOTH from the same rich family. BOTH do the exact same stuff. You just pick which HAT COLOR you like! That's not a choice! That's like "Do you want pinched on your LEFT arm or RIGHT arm?" Either way—you're getting PINCHED! They call it voting so you FEEL in charge. But you're just picking which captain takes your treasure! Liberty Lesson: Voting SOUNDS awesome. "Pirates get a voice!" But if ALL the choices are bad? Not a real choice—it's a TRAP! Pick the color of the cage—still a CAGE! Jab: Before the vote—BIG promises! "Free candy! Shorter chores!" Then they win and... nothing changes. Same rules. Same treasure taken. Same bossy captains! Sneaky part—if you DON'T vote they say "Then you can't complain!" But I didn't set up this trap! Why can't I complain about a trap I never asked for? It's like "Pick which bully takes your lunch—Bully Bob or Bully Bill?" You pick Bob, he takes your lunch. "YOU voted for him!" Not fair! I didn't want EITHER bully! Quest: Ask your family—what if NONE of the choices are good? Do we HAVE to pick? Does voting mean you're free? Or just picking who bosses you? Real freedom isn't picking your boss. Real freedom is NO boss! YOUR life is YOUR ship! Nobody steers it but YOU! #LibertyPirates #RealFreedom #ThinkForYourself

Ahoy, crew! Gather 'round for the OLDEST trick in the pirate world—The Fake Monster Trick! Here's how it works: A captain wants to sell SWORDS. Big, shiny, expensive swords! But nobody's buying. Why? Nothing to be scared of! So what does the sneaky captain do? He makes up a MONSTER! "Oh no! SCARY SEA BEAST coming! Ten tentacles! Sharp teeth! It'll EAT your whole ship! Buy MY SWORDS!" Everyone gets scared! They buy swords! Captain gets RICH! But here's the secret—there WAS no monster. He MADE IT UP to sell more swords! And when people stop being scared? NEW monster! "This one has TWENTY tentacles!" More swords! More gold! The trick never ends! Liberty Lesson: Some captains get rich keeping you SCARED. No fear? No sales! They NEED you afraid. They NEED monsters—real or not! Jab: Next time someone says "Buy this or the MONSTER will get you!"—STOP. Is the monster REAL? Or does someone get GOLD if you're scared? And WHO fights the "monster?" Not the captain selling swords! Regular pirates fight while the captain counts coins! Quest: Ask your family—has anyone tried to SCARE you so you'd buy something or do what they say? Bet they have a story! Fear is a TRICK! Don't fall for it! Think FIRST, fear LAST! Liberty Pirates stay BRAVE! #LibertyPirates #ThinkForYourself #FearIsATrick

Ahoy, crew! You know what's weird? Every day, young pirates HAVE to go to a big building. Sit in rows. Raise your hand to TALK. Raise your hand to PEE. Get in trouble if you WIGGLE. We call it Public School Prison! DING! Bell rings—you MOVE! DING! Bell rings—you STOP! You don't pick what you learn. THEY pick! Bored? Wanna run around? "Sit STILL! Something's WRONG with you! Take this pill!" But learning is supposed to be FUN! Building stuff! Exploring! So why does school feel like a cage? Because it IS a cage! They don't want you to THINK—they want you to OBEY. Sit. Listen. Memorize. Forget. Repeat! Liberty Lesson: Real pirates learn by DOING! Wanna know about ships? BUILD one! Wanna know about treasure? Go TRADE! But in school prison? Sit and listen to someone TALK about ships. Boooooring! Jab: The captains who MAKE the rules? Their kids don't go to YOUR school! THEIR kids get small classes, fun projects, time to play. But YOU? Pack 'em in, keep 'em quiet, memorize stuff you'll forget by summer! They never teach the GOOD stuff—how to build, trade, grow food! Just fill in bubbles and ask permission for EVERYTHING! Quest: Ask your family what THEY wish they learned! What would YOU learn if nobody told you what to do? Books, building, exploring—THAT'S how pirates learn best! Your brain is YOUR treasure! Nobody gets to lock it up! Liberty Pirates learn FREE! #LibertyPirates #Homeschool #FreedomToLearn

Ahoy! Pirates sail into Media Monopoly Marina—parrots EVERYWHERE squawking the SAME EXACT WORDS! "FEAR THE STORM!" on every ship, dock, tavern—word for word! Turns out ONE sneaky captain—Captain Conglomerate—owns ALL the parrots! Pretends they're different—different colored feathers, different names, different ships. But they ALL repeat HIS script! Any parrot squawks something different? Feathers ripped out, called CRAZY PARROT, banned from marina! "Don't listen—it spreads LIES!" Meanwhile HIS parrots make stuff up! Liberty Lesson: When you watch "news," you think it's different people. NOPE! Just SIX captains own almost ALL parrots in the WHOLE world! Six! They decide stories, words, what you're SCARED of today. Not news—a SCRIPT! Jab: Ever notice EVERY parrot says exact same thing, exact same day? "This is dangerous to our democracy!" Word for word, ship to ship! That ain't news—that's PROGRAMMING! Training you what to think! Trick: Captain Conglomerate has "fact checker" parrots too! But who PAYS them? SAME CAPTAIN! Free parrot squawks truth? "WRONG! LIES! MISINFORMATION!" Rigged game! Quest: Ask—"Who OWNS this parrot? Who's paying? Are others saying EXACT same thing?" Find THREE sources not owned by same captain! If ALL saying same thing—not proof it's TRUE, proof it's a SCRIPT! Don't be trained parrot—be FREE pirate! #LibertyPirates #MediaLiteracy #ThinkForYourself

Ahoy! Strange times on Panicky Island! Some pirates got sniffles—normal stuff. But Captain Fearmonger screamed: "DEADLY PLAGUE! Stay in huts! Cover faces with rags! Don't hug grandma!" Whole island went CRAZY—locked in huts for MONTHS! Couldn't play, trade, see friends. Kids couldn't go to sword practice! Then Fearmonger said: "My buddies made MAGIC POTION! Drink it = SAFE! Must drink or can't work, shop, sail!" But potion was brand NEW—never tested long! Some asked: "What's IN it? What if I feel worse? Why do HEALTHY pirates need it?" Fearmonger: "SHUT UP! Drink or BANNED!" Liberty Lesson: Scared pirates drank fast—no questions. But WISE pirates said: "Hold on. I feel fine. It's brand new. I'll wait." They asked questions. Said NO. What happened? "Scary plague" = mostly sniffles for healthy pirates! Many who drank STILL got sick! Some felt WORSE! Pirates who waited? Doing FINE—now THEY look smart! Jab: Potion makers got MOUNTAINS of treasure! Captains who forced = more power! But pirates who said "NO—MY body, MY choice"? Kept freedom AND health! Quest: Ask folks—"Should ANYONE force potions you don't want?" Talk: "What if everyone says MUST but gut says wait?" YOUR body, YOUR choice—not captain's! Think for yourself, question panic, stay free! #LibertyPirates #MyBodyMyChoice #QuestionEverything

Ahoy! Harry & Archer sail into dark waters—CENTRAL BANK KRAKEN! Massive monster, tentacles everywhere—wrapped around treasure chests, bakeries, YOUR piggy bank! Want a boat? Kraken says yes/no. Saved gold coins? Kraken makes 'em worth LESS yearly! Try escaping? Tentacles grab you! Archer reveals trick—Kraken's sneaky name: "Federal Reserve." Sounds like GOVERNMENT, right? Big safe full of treasure? NOPE! SECRET CLUB of super-rich bankers! They PRINT money from thin air, loan it, make YOU pay extra treasure back forever! Liberty Lesson: Central Bank Kraken = ONLY one allowed to print money. Decides how much exists, who gets loans, coin value. But trick—NOT government! Private club PRETENDS official! Print fake paper, flood island, REAL treasure buys less candy, toys, everything! Archer jab: "Federal" = NOTHING (not gov run!), "Reserve" = NOTHING (no gold vault!)—trick name! Print whenever, rich buddies get first, by time it reaches US—prices SKY-HIGH! Quest: Ask parents—"Who prints money? Fed part of government?" Look up together! Ask: "Print from nothing, we pay extra—who's REAL pirate?" Log findings! Whoever controls money controls EVERYTHING! Break free! #LibertyPirates #EndTheFed #SoundMoney