Live Free Now w/ John Bush

Yesterday I went to a Bastrop City Council workshop because Flock cameras were on the agenda.

Was the first time I've engaged a local or state government in a LONG time.

It was a packed house. The council said it was the most people they'd ever had at one of these workshops. Person after person got up to speak against Flock. Exactly one person registered in favor, and they didn't even speak.

I got the chance to speak twice during citizens communication, and I'm playing both of those videos on today's show.

Here's what most people don't realize about these cameras. According to the DeFlock website there are around 30 Flock cameras in Bastrop, and only 12 of them are actually controlled by the Bastrop Police Department. And "controlled" is doing a lot of work in that sentence, because cities don't own these things. They lease them from Flock. All the data flows up to Flock, and Flock uses it to train their AI models.

On today's show:

The full footage of both times I addressed the council
What actually happened in that room and what the police chief had to say
My honest take on engaging at the local level, when it's worth your energy and when it isn't
How to push back on Flock in your own town
And the exit and build solutions that matter more than any of it

Also this week:

Tomorrow at 12:00 pm Central we're going live for the free Trifecta Effect webinar with Sacred Honor Educational Fellowship. Trusts, private membership associations, and ministries, and how they fit together.
https://divinepma.com/trifecta 

And if you're planning to come to Exit & Build 6, now is the time. Ticket prices go up August 31st at midnight. November 5th through 8th at Sovereignty Ranch in Bandera, Texas.
https://exitandbuild.com 

David Avocado Wolfe is joining us in person at Exit & Build 6, November 5 through 8, 2026, at Mollie Engelhart's Sovereignty Ranch in Bandera, Texas.

Three decades as one of the most recognizable voices in natural health and superfoods. Longevity, nutrition, raw and living foods, herbalism, soil and mineral density. And one of the loudest voices telling people not to outsource their health to institutions that haven't earned the trust.

Which is exactly what exit and build is about. You can't build a sovereign life on a body that depends on the system you're trying to exit.

He joins Joel Skousen, Michael Joseph and the Sacred Honor crew, Jeremy Cordon of Goldback, Jason Crowe and Mike Winner of Qortal, Matt Powers, Curtis Stone, Doug and Stacy, River and Imani of Haven Village, the Meders of Privacy Academy, and a full music lineup.

Four days on a working regenerative ranch in the Texas Hill Country, an hour from San Antonio. Hands-on implementation zones where you leave with the thing done, not notes about the thing.

Get your ticket:

https://exitandbuild.com 

Joel Skousen has spent nearly five decades helping people answer one question: where should you live when the systems around you start to fail?

This talk has never been available publicly. Joel delivered it at Exit & Build 2, and we're releasing it now for the first time.

In it he walks through the core of his life's work:

Strategic relocation and how to evaluate where you live right now. Population density, prevailing winds, nuclear and military target proximity, water access, growing season, state law, and the neighbors you'd actually be depending on. Joel breaks down why he looks west of the Mississippi, which states he's changed his mind about, and the mistakes people make when they relocate for the wrong reasons.

Home and retreat security. Joel is an architect who's designed high security residences across North America, Canada, and Latin America. He gets into secure room design, EMP-protected power, water and food storage, and what actually holds up versus what just feels safe.

And the honest assessment of the threats. Grid failure, EMP, economic collapse, war, and the long-term consolidation of surveillance and control. Joel doesn't sugarcoat any of it, and he'll tell you why he refuses to. His view is that optimism is what keeps people from preparing.

About Joel Skousen

Former Navy and Marine Corps fighter pilot turned architect. He began writing The Secure Home in 1979, making him one of the genuine pioneers of the modern preparedness movement. He's the author of Strategic Relocation: North American Guide to Safe Places, still the definitive reference on threat-based relocation, and co-author of The High Security Shelter Book with his son, a structural engineer. He has published the World Affairs Brief every week for decades.

Joel is speaking at Exit & Build 6

We just announced it. Joel is joining us in person at Exit & Build 6, November 5 through 8, 2026, at Sovereignty Ranch in Bandera, Texas.

He's giving a full talk plus a hands-on workshop, going deeper than he could in the time he had here. Nuclear and fallout protection, secure water and food storage, EMP-protected long-term power, evading social unrest, and the secure room design he's spent a career refining. You'll be able to walk up and ask him about your own property, your own plan, your own situation.

Exit & Build 6 is four days on a working regenerative ranch in the Texas Hill Country with speakers and builders across the counter-economy, decentralized tech, private realm structures, food and land, and lawful remedy. The whole event is built around implementation zones, where you don't just take notes. You leave with your crypto wallet funded, your privacy gaps closed, your land or community plan drawn up, and your private realm pathway mapped.

Ticket prices go up August 31st.

Get your ticket: https://exitandbuild.com 

Brought to you by Live Free Academy. Stay free out there.

I've spent over 16 years building the counter-economy. Trading precious metals for goods and services with real businesses. Actual trades, actual people, actual yeses.

In this video I break down exactly how I do it. The scripts, the mindset, and the moves that get a business owner nodding instead of staring at you like you just asked to pay in seashells.

You'll learn:

How to walk up to a farmers market vendor and get a yes on the spot
Why pitching a brick and mortar is a completely different game than pitching an online shop
How to know what to pay so you're never overpaying or insulting the person across the counter
The objections you'll hit before you even open your mouth, and how to handle them

This is what's worked for me across hundreds of real transactions... building a parallel economy that doesn't need the dollar or the banking system to function.

If you want to go deeper, join us this Saturday, August 8th, for the Exit & Build Virtual Summit 2. Jeremy Cordon, founder of Goldback, is speaking on using spendable gold in everyday commerce. Free to attend.

Grab your spot here:

https://exitandbuild.com/virtual 

Sal the Agorist is joining us at the Exit and Build Virtual Summit 2 on August 8th... so we're replaying one of our best conversations with him to get you ready.

In this episode we get into what agorism actually means and why Sal thinks politics can't ever produce freedom, no matter who wins the next election. He breaks down the counter-economy... entrepreneurial noncompliance... and why every regulation they pass just creates ten new ways around it.

Sal will be one of our speakers at the Exit and Build Virtual Summit 2 — Strategy Edition, happening online August 8th. Register free below.

🔗 Register for the Virtual Summit: exitandbuild.com/virtual
🔗 Join the daily newsletter: livefree.academy/newsletter
🔗 Sal the Agorist: saltheagorist.com | x.com/SallyMayweather

Topics covered: agorism, counter-economy, opting out of the statist economy, Bitcoin Cash vs Monero, buying crypto without KYC, entrepreneurship and infopreneurship, financial privacy, decentralized exchanges, Exit and Build Virtual Summit 2.

On today's Live Free Now show, I'm breaking down a recent post I saw shared by Alec Zeck about pragmatism versus principles, and why so many in the freedom movement choose pragmatism over consistent principles rooted in the philosophy of liberty.

I'll break down why I became a full on anarchist, a voluntaryist, and why I reject government wholeheartedly. And I'll share why we need to go further than just philosophy, into actually applying the philosophy of liberty.

In this episode:

Why I reject government wholeheartedly as a way to organize society
Why government has failed civilization time and time again
Why it's responsible for more death and destruction than any other institution in existence
How we build systems that actually align with the philosophy of liberty

Want to see freedom in action? We're building the free society from the ground up. Join us for Exit & Build 6, November 5th to the 8th, at Sovereignty Ranch. Alec Zeck, Curtis Stone, and Mollie Engelhart, will be speaking, along with an entire cast of folks who are living the philosophy of liberty.

Get your tickets at https://exitandbuild.com

In this episode I'm breaking down 5 powerful strategies to meet freedom friends and build your own freedom crew, drawn from 24 years of organizing freedom lovers, homesteaders, agorists, and folks who question the official narrative.
Here's what we'll get into:

Where to actually find your people (the spots most folks overlook)
What to look for so you connect with the right ones
How to strike up a conversation without it feeling forced
How to organize your own meetups and keep them going
What to watch out for so you protect yourself and your crew

I'll also talk about the Freedom Cell Network and how it all ties in... it's one of the best tools out there to meet people and get active in your area.

Then we'll open it up. I'll be doing a live Q&A and breaking down Exit & Build 6 this November at Sovereignty Ranch in Texas... what to expect, who's speaking, and how the whole thing works. If you've got questions for me, jump in live and I'll answer them on the show.

Come hang out, take notes, and start building your freedom crew.

Learn more about Exit & Build 6 here:
https://exitandbuild.com 

John's on the road in Chattanooga this week, so today's episode is a powerful one pulled from the archives. 

This throwback dives into one of the most foundational topics for anyone pursuing financial sovereignty, freedom, and a life outside the mainstream system: limiting beliefs.

If you've ever told yourself "I can't do this" or "I'll only mess it up," you're not alone. John shares his own journey through poverty, divorce, and self-doubt, and the exact mindset shift that helped him go from struggling to make rent to building the life he has today. This is a real conversation about the internal obstacles that keep people from pursuing land ownership, entrepreneurship, and true financial freedom... and practical tools to break through them.

Whether you're working toward buying land, starting a business, exiting the 9-to-5, or just trying to build a life with more purpose and autonomy, this episode will help you identify the false beliefs holding you back and replace them with the mindset it takes to actually get there.

🔥 SAVE THE DATE: Exit and Build 6 — Freedom in Action
📍 Sovereignty Ranch, Bandera, Texas
📅 November 5th–8th
🎟️ Get your tickets: exitandbuild.com 

 

Most people buy the wrong land. They fall in love with a view, sign the papers, and only later find out the water's no good, the soil won't grow, or the access road washes out every spring. Curtis Stone has spent years helping people avoid exactly that.

In this keynote, originally delivered at Exit & Build 3, Curtis breaks down his complete framework for finding the perfect homestead... the same system he uses through Freedom Farmers and the Homestead Accelerator to vet land for serious buyers.

Curtis Stone built a 40-acre off-grid homestead in British Columbia and ran the Urban Farmer (now Off Grid with Curtis Stone), one of the biggest homesteading channels out there. This talk is him handing you the checklist.
In this replay you'll learn:

- The make-or-break factors most people completely overlook when buying land
- How to read topography, water, soil, and climate before you ever make an offer
- Why "cheap land" is often the most expensive mistake you can make
- How to weigh trade-offs between properties instead of buying on emotion
- The difference between land that looks good and land that actually works

Curtis is joining us live and in person at Exit & Build 6, November 5–8 at Sovereignty Ranch in Bandera, Texas... where he'll be leading homestead land workshops and sitting down one-on-one in our Implementation Zones to help attendees vet real properties on the spot.

Grab your Exit & Build 6 ticket here:

https://exitandbuild.com 

Follow Curtis:

Off Grid with Curtis Stone (YouTube) and @offgridstone on X

Freedom Farmers: https://freedomfarmers.com 

I'm out at Haven Village right now... spending the next couple weeks on the land, connecting with members, and dialing in the private realm side of the project. So I figured there was no better time to sit down with River and Imani and pull back the curtain on what they're building out here.

Haven Village is a 216-acre regenerative development in Tennessee, built entirely in the private realm... trust-stewarded land, organized through a PMA, under a ministry of nature. River and Imani aren't talking about exit and build. They're living it. Hemp homes going up, regenerative agriculture in the ground, real people moving onto real land.

In this conversation we get into:

- What it actually takes to develop land in the private realm... trust, PMA, and ministry structure explained
- The hemp home build-out and the regenerative agriculture plan for the property
- The wins, the setbacks, and the lessons you only learn by doing it
- How a community like this holds together when the founders are stewards, not owners

We also talk about how River, Imani, and Haven Village will be featured at Exit & Build 6 this November at Sovereignty Ranch in the Texas Hill Country... the workshops they'll lead and the hands-on Implementation Zone work attendees will get to do with them. 

If you've ever wanted to sit with people who've actually built a sovereign community and walk away with a plan, this is the kind of thing E&B6 is built around.

Come build with us at Exit & Build 6:

https://exitandbuild.com