Brownstone Institute

Plato's Cave Resurrected

Plato’s Cave Resurrected

SHARE | PRINT | EMAIL

Just as, at any given time, there are conventions or ‘shadows’ that have a stranglehold on people’s ability to see beyond what current, tacit agreements allow one to see, today there are unprecedented, deliberately manufactured ‘shadows’ that govern the visible and auditory world. What are some of these? 

Academics Raise Concerns About UK Covid-19 Inquiry - Brownstone Institute

Academics Raise Concerns About UK Covid-19 Inquiry

SHARE | PRINT | EMAIL

Over 50 prominent UK academics have signed an open letter to Baroness Heather Hallett, chair of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry, calling for urgent action to address the shortcomings of the probe so far. The signatories of the letter say the Hallett Inquiry suffers from bias, false assumptions, and a lack of impartiality.

Harvard's Latest Act of Shame

Harvard’s Latest Act of Shame

SHARE | PRINT | EMAIL

Harvard, once an esteemed and trustworthy source in science, has lost its way. The firing of Martin for speaking freely during the pandemic is a disaster for Harvard’s reputation. There is a petition for having Martin reinstated at Harvard, but we hope he is not interested in going back, which does not deserve to have a professor like Martin among its faculty. 

We Failed the Freedom Test - Brownstone Institute

We Failed the Freedom Test

SHARE | PRINT | EMAIL

Everything I have warned about for years—government overreach, invasive surveillance, martial law, abuse of powers, militarized police, weaponized technology used to track and control the citizenry, and so on—has become part of the government’s arsenal of terrifying lockdown powers should the need arise. What we should be bracing for is: what comes next?

Brownstone Institute Logo

Brownstone Institute for Social and Economic Research is a nonprofit organization conceptualized in May 2021. 

Its vision is of a society that places the highest value on the voluntary interaction of individuals and groups while minimizing the use of violence and force even including that which is exercised by public authority.

This vision is that of the Enlightenment which elevates learning, science, progress, and universal rights to the forefront of public life, and is newly threatened by ideologies and systems that would take the world back prior to the triumph of the ideal of freedom. 

Not Just This One Crisis

The motive force of Brownstone Institute is the global crisis created by policy responses to the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020. That trauma reveals a fundamental misunderstanding alive in all countries around the world today, a willingness on the part of the public and officials to forgo freedom and fundamental human rights in the name of a public health crisis. The consequences are devastating and will live in infamy.

It’s not just about this one crisis, but past and next ones as well. The lesson we should learn concerns the desperate need for a new outlook that rejects the rights of the legally privileged few to rule over the many under any pretext, while preserving  freedom, free speech, and  essential rights even in times of crisis.

Why “Brownstone?”

The name Brownstone is from the malleable but long-lasting building stone (also called “Freestone”) used so commonly in 19th-century American cities, preferred for its beauty, practicality, and strength. 

Brownstone Institute regards the great task of our times as rebuilding the foundation of liberalism as classically understood, including core values of human rights and freedom as non-negotiables for an enlightened society.

OUR MISSION

The mission of Brownstone Institute is constructively to come to terms with what happened, understand why, and how to prevent such events from happening again. Lockdowns have set a precedent in the modern world and without accountability, social and economic institutions will be shattered once again. 

An institution such as Brownstone Institute is essential in preventing the recurrence of lockdowns by holding decision makers intellectually to account. 

In addition, Brownstone Institute hopes to shed light on a path to recovery from the devastating collateral damage, while providing a vision for a different way to think about freedom, security, and public life.

Brownstone Institute looks to influence a post-lockdown world by generating new ideas in public health, scientific discourse, economics, and social theory, to defend and promote the liberty that is critical for an enlightened society from which everyone benefits. 

The purpose of Brownstone Institute is to point the way toward a better understanding of essential freedoms – including intellectual freedom and free speech – and the proper means to preserve essential rights even in times of crisis.

The Road Ahead

The world needs Brownstone Institute now to prevent the next “snap” lockdown and make the case for an open and free society. 

The idea is to correct and compete with the mainstream media and take on the technocratic disease managers, or anyone else who believes rights and liberties can be violated, at the discretion of political leaders, to central plans.

The research and content at Brownstone are sophisticated but accessible. Operationally, Brownstone’s mode is no fluff in the budget, no bureaucrats, no cronies, only a highly competent small team working to change the world. 

The institute will have media reach and call on scientists, intellectuals, and others who are dedicated to this task.

OUR PRIMARY FOCUS

Brownstone Institute’s goals are accomplished through research and publishing, including essays, articles, reports, media, and books, and by organizing conferences and retreats.

NEWSLETTER

Stay Informed with Brownstone Institute
Stay Informed with Brownstone Institute