Freedom! Jesus promised it, William Wallace screamed it, Americans buy it. But even though it’s one of the most used words in America, it seems terribly elusive. Remember what the internet was going to do? Free us from . . . snail mail? Commercials? Desks? Well, I don’t remember exactly, but it certainly was exciting. And liberating! Yeah.  

Fun to see the recent article in the Economist about a new software package called, yep, “Freedom.” According to Freedom’s website (macfreedom.com), “Freedom is a simple productivity application that locks you away from the internet on Mac or Windows computers for up to eight hours at a time. Freedom frees you from distractions, allowing you time to write, analyze, code, or create. At the end of your offline period, Freedom allows you back on the internet.”

I don’t know about you, but I had to smile at a software package that frees me from the internet. In fact, Freedom actually has some serious chutzpah, it actually ENFORCES freedom (the official software of the Tea Party movement?). Again, according to the site, “Freedom enforces freedom; you'll need to reboot if you want to get back online while Freedom's running. The hassle of rebooting means you're less likely to cheat, and you'll enjoy enhanced productivity. Freedom does one thing and it does it exceedingly well: It helps you get work done.” Their bold, not mine.

I bet they sell a ton of software.