Defy the Matrix, Rebuild the World

For too long, we’ve grown accustomed to living under the shadow of invisible restraints—a slow, insidious loss of strength and meaning. Each misstep from today’s orthodoxy risks not just disapproval but exile, rendering individuals unemployable or ostracized. We face a centralized order where freedom is corroded, wealth is increasingly monopolized, and authentic relationships give way to a stifling atmosphere of conformity.

When the World Economic Forum (WEF) proposes a “great reset,” proclaiming that in the future, people will “own nothing and be happy,” “eat less meat,” and endure their “values being tested to the breaking point,” this is not merely rhetoric; it is a call for vigorous resistance. Such statements aim to redefine ownership, vitality, and morality. They position private property, robust health, and Christian principles as relics in a new, controlled world order. Climate activists, with language on “population optimization,” have laid bare an agenda against family, fertility, and economic independence, revealing a broader hostility toward values that cultivate human flourishing.

Beneath the veneer of respectability lies a hunger to make the masses dependent on the State, beholden to corporate aristocracies, and answerable to globalist overlords. In this world, breaking free is imperative, not simply for freedom’s sake but for human dignity.

Federal governments, rather than safeguarding national sovereignty, are often found enabling institutions like the WEF and the United Nations. Their policies seem deliberately crafted to undermine families, dismantle freedom, and obscure truths essential for individual and collective flourishing. Instead of upholding virtues of prudence, temperance, and justice; these powers push an ahistorical, deconstructed culture of death—a utopia of modernity, severed from tradition, morality, and responsibility, managed by the elite’s centralized grip.

The fictional modern philosopher Morpheus aptly referred to this manipulated order as “The Matrix,” a world of psyops, illusions, and state-orchestrated dependence. Beneath the veneer of respectability lies a hunger to make the masses dependent on the State, beholden to corporate aristocracies, and answerable to globalist overlords. In this world, breaking free is imperative, not simply for freedom’s sake but for human dignity. However, escape alone is insufficient; tyranny seeks retribution against defectors. A real alternative—a parallel economy—must rise in defiance and self-sufficiency.

The parallel economy—a network of businesses, media, and educational institutions committed to freedom, prosperity, family, and faith—embodies the courage to call out the naked emperor and provide formidable competition. These institutions understand that mere dissent is not enough; they identify the need to create something genuine and enduring outside the reach of envy-fueled, state-sanctioned dependence. Leaders in this movement recognize the threat posed to their families, livelihoods, and values and have resolved to act.

At the heart of the parallel economy are households determined to reclaim control. Inspired by figures like Joel Salatin, homesteaders and families are returning to a more sustainable, self-reliant way of life. Authors like John Moody, Rory Groves, and C.R. Wiley offer compelling visions of the home as an economic, cultural, and educational foundation. After all, the term “economy” itself derives from the Greek word oikos, meaning “household.” For a parallel economy to thrive, it must elevate the household as a linchpin institution.

This economy extends well beyond farming or individual households. For instance, Red Balloon—a job board led by Andrew Crapuchettes—connects like-minded workers and employers outside the progressive corporate mold. In collaboration with Public Square, Red Balloon has contributed to the Freedom Economy Index, which includes over 50,000 “anti-woke” businesses. Meanwhile, New Founding, a venture led by men such as Nate Fischer and Santiago Pliego, supports early-stage startups and local community projects, investing in the real economic backbone of a free society.

In the financial sector, alternatives to centralized banking, such as Thank God for Bitcoin, have emerged, promoting decentralized currencies beyond the reach of government intervention. Institutions like America’s Christian Credit Union and Coign further the parallel economy by providing faith-driven financial services.

Healthcare, long suffocated under the grip of bureaucracy and escalating costs, has inspired a growing wave of alternatives tailored to the needs of families seeking both freedom and affordability. Organizations like Samaritan Ministries, Veritas Surgery, and Story Family Medicine stand as bulwarks against the impersonal, corporate healthcare giants. These alternatives champion a vision of healthcare that is pro-family, effective, and economically viable—an antidote to the sterile, one-size-fits-all model that leaves many families both underserved and overcharged. The Free Market Medical Association seeks to “unite all of the islands of excellence in healthcare and accelerate the speed and growth of the free market healthcare revolution.”

In an era when justice itself seems endangered—manipulated to appease woke mobs and deployed as a weapon against dissenters—a steadfast legal defense is essential. The justice system, under siege from forces seeking to undermine the very foundations of freedom, requires guardians who can uphold its core principles without compromise. The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) has emerged as a critical defender on the front lines of this battle. ADF champions religious liberty, free speech, the sanctity of life, and parental rights, standing firm as culture shifts, tides turn, and core liberties are increasingly at risk.

Mainstream news and entertainment media have largely become conduits for ideological propaganda, routinely sowing fear, manipulating narratives, and championing statist agendas. Public trust in these institutions is rapidly eroding, as evidenced by Elon Musk’s recent $44 billion Twitter acquisition—a monumental moment for free speech. Independent platforms like Joe Rogan’s podcast and The Daily Wire now reach millions, bypassing legacy media's gatekeeping.

Organizations like Canon Press and companies like Loor are leading a charge to produce and distribute content rooted in truth, beauty, and goodness. The Babylon Bee, with its signature satire, disarms the propagandist veneer of mainstream culture. Emerging firms like Advent Digital Solutions are developing digital tools to aid individuals and institutions aligned with these values, ushering in an era where media no longer undermines Christian values but actively supports them.

Political movements such as American Moment, the Heritage Foundation, and Turning Point USA inspire grassroots initiatives, challenging the intellectual monotony of the mainstream. They are forming a fresh bench of leaders and innovators, infusing the political landscape with new energy and “unorthodox” ideas.

The need for a parallel economy is pressing, driven by the fracture of our most foundational institutions—family, church, and state—which have, in many ways, abdicated their duties.

Intellectual think tanks like the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship stand as counterforces to the hollow globalist rhetoric that dominates the annual Davos summits hosted by the World Economic Forum. In contrast to the WEF's top-down prescriptions for world governance and centralized economic control, the Alliance champions principles rooted in personal responsibility, national sovereignty, and individual liberty.

In religion, younger generations of Christians are increasingly repelled by the milquetoast positions of establishment figures who serve as religious lobbyists for progressive causes. Evangelical leaders like David French and Russell Moore, who accommodate the left’s agenda, are losing influence among young men yearning for a faith marked by courage and conviction. Conversely, groups like the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches are reviving historical doctrines, inspiring a robust resurgence in family, masculinity, and comprehensive cultural engagement.

At the heart of any cultural resurgence lies education. Institutions like the Association of Classical Christian Schools (ACCS) provide an alternative to the ideological rot of public schools, aiming to cultivate virtuous, freedom-loving citizens. Partnered with the CLT (Classic Learning Test), led by Jeremy Tate, ACCS institutions maintain rigorous academic standards, fostering a generation capable of leading a restored civilization.

New Saint Andrews College (NSA) stands as a bastion of this parallel cultural order. Refusing federal funding, NSA pursues excellence on principled, Christian terms. The institution's graduates, schooled in the best of Western tradition, possess the courage to challenge prevailing norms and build a society worthy of their ideals.

The need for a parallel economy is pressing, driven by the fracture of our most foundational institutions—family, church, and state—which have, in many ways, abdicated their duties. When the family neglected its roles in health, education, and welfare, the State intruded upon this sacred ground, taking on a lordship over family life that was never intended. When the church abandoned its role as the pillar and ground of Truth in society, the State stepped into the vacuum, enforcing a secularized moralism on the culture. And when the State neglected its God-given duty to uphold justice by punishing evil and rewarding good, it did so because it had assumed authority over realms beyond its jurisdiction, leaving it distracted, weakened, and deferential to global entities with their own agendas of social justice and equity.

Western civilization has permitted the rise of tyranny not through brute force but through cultural acquiescence. Before tyranny takes shape in law, it festers in the culture—a gradual erosion of the moral courage to resist.

The parallel economy, then, ought to be built upon a reestablishment of the family, church, and state as the primary institutions they were meant to be. By restoring these foundational pillars, we set the conditions for economies to thrive organically. Statism first attacked these institutions because here lies the strength capable of resisting tyranny—roots from which any meaningful opposition would arise from the men leading them. For as long as these institutions remain unhealthy and fractured, any economy is vulnerable to decay. Advocates of the parallel economy have a unique opportunity to support the rebuilding of these institutions, remembering that without them, all efforts and innovations will ultimately lack stability and endurance. Without families, these economies lack builders and a future. Without churches, they lack a moral bedrock to withstand the corrosive forces of consumerism and statism. The health of these institutions is a safeguard against tyranny.

Sustaining a parallel economy requires men and women who understand where their efforts should be directed and who recognize the essential role of foundational institutions. It demands people who prioritize production over consumption, driven by a spirit of service rather than entitlement. These are individuals who value self-reliance balanced with a commitment to community, embodying a resilience that extends beyond themselves. They are building legacies meant to last beyond their own lifetimes—an economy with a multigenerational purpose. Such pioneers understand that economies rest on moral principles, and they strive to embody those daily. They are undeterred by mediocrity, relentlessly pursuing excellence in the hope that future generations will inherit a world of freedom, responsibility, and beauty. They are committed to a reformation that seeks to apply good theology that serves as a call to fruitful living, to filling the earth, and to exercising dominion with purpose and stewardship.

Building economies should not be viewed as a distant ideal requiring billions of dollars in capital. Economies are built whenever individuals take ownership of and responsibility for their own lives and property, pursue enterprise even on a small scale, support local businesses that reflect their values, start families and raise children with virtue, participate in covenantal church communities, extend hospitality to neighbors and strangers, and strive to be faithful and fruitful stewards of the time, talents, opportunities, and relationships God has entrusted to them. In all these efforts, people are engaging in the essential work of building economies. God has endowed His redeemed image-bearers with the capacity to shape culture, and this calling should naturally result in economies that promote true human flourishing.

Western civilization has permitted the rise of tyranny not through brute force but through cultural acquiescence. Before tyranny takes shape in law, it festers in the culture—a gradual erosion of the moral courage to resist. This dynamic forms a vicious cycle: cultural degradation begets policy that entrenches further cultural decay. Building a parallel economy is not for the faint of heart; it is dangerous, disruptive, and defiant. Yet, in the face of such profound threats, it is also profoundly necessary.

A parallel economy alone will not suffice if it is devoid of a parallel culture. The two are inseparable, as culture shapes commerce, and commerce, in turn, sustains culture. To restore a culture that values freedom, beauty, and truth, we must cultivate an economy that resists dependency, defies centralization, and celebrates productive, virtuous lives. In this endeavor lies a bold new vision—a society prepared to endure, to inspire, and ultimately to flourish in the face of whatever dystopian utopia global elites might seek to impose. The task is daunting, but it is noble, and, at this opportune hour, it is one we must undertake.