Freedom and independence have always gone hand in hand. The less you have to rely on others for life\u2019s basic needs, the more free you are. This was the idea espoused by proto-libertarians like Henry David Thoreau, whose back-to-nature philosophy wedded the rugged individualism of the right with the ecological consciousness of the left.<\/p>\n
If Thoreau has a modern-day equivalent, it might well be Thomas Massie, the Kentucky congressman who manages to be both down-to-Earth and sensible while appearing to outside observers like a mass of contradictions. An MIT graduate who initially made a living inventing new forms of virtual reality tech, Massie now lives on a remote farm with his wife and children, completely disconnected from the U.S. electrical grid on which the rest of us depend for our very lives.<\/p>\n
Solar panels power the farm; a mountaintop lake provides gravity-fed water pressure in more than sufficient quantities; and much of the food consumed is grown on the property. Massie drives a Tesla, and personally built his impressive home from stones and timber harvested from the surrounding forest. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n