Freedom for Poetry to Prosper
I want to begin with a story.
In 2020, in the middle of uncertainty, I took a leap of faith. In the small New England town of Guyra, I opened the Australian Poetry Hall of Fame inside the historic Arcadia Theatre, built back in 1929.
Now, some people might have said I was crazy—opening a cultural enterprise in a rural town, during a pandemic, with little more than a vision and determination. But I believed in the idea of giving poetry, art, and culture a permanent home.
And here’s what happened: we grew.
We built a library and archive of Australian poetry. We opened the Australian Poets Portrait Gallery. We started Wednesday Words, a weekly open mic poetry event that brought the community together. We created exhibitions, performances, and opportunities. What began as one person’s dream became a living, breathing enterprise that now attracts visitors, fosters talent, and contributes to the town’s cultural and economic life.
That’s not just poetry. That’s prosperity.
And it was only possible because of freedom—the freedom to create, to take risks, to build something new.
Freedom Creates Prosperity
You see, prosperity does not come from governments deciding what you can and cannot do. It doesn’t come from central plans, or from ration books, or from promises that everyone will be made “equal” by force.
Prosperity comes from freedom—the freedom to try, the freedom to fail, the freedom to get up again, and the freedom to succeed.
History gives us powerful examples:
North Korea vs South Korea: the same people, the same land, but two systems. North Korea embraced communism—today, people live in poverty and fear. South Korea embraced capitalism—today, it is one of the richest, most innovative nations in the world, leading in technology, culture, and education.
East Germany vs West Germany: When the Berlin Wall came down in 1989, people could see the difference with their own eyes. In the West, shops were full, innovation was thriving, and people had hope. In the East, scarcity, grey buildings, and repression. The wall fell—and people ran not toward socialism, but toward freedom.
China: Under Mao’s communism, tens of millions starved during the Great Leap Forward. But when China opened parts of its economy to market reforms in the late 20th century, hundreds of millions were lifted out of poverty. Not because of central planning—but because of market freedom.
And let’s not forget the story closer to home: Australia. Our prosperity—our homes, our industries, our schools, our culture—all grew because we embraced enterprise, innovation, and trade.
The Human Story
But numbers and charts only tell half the story. The real story of capitalism is human.
It is the young entrepreneur starting a coffee cart in a small town.
It is the artist who sells their work online to the world.
It is the farmer who brings fresh produce to market.
It is the teacher who starts a tutoring business to help kids succeed.
It is ordinary people, using their talents and their freedom, to create something extraordinary.
A Call to Action
Friends, capitalism is not perfect. It must be guided by ethics, by fairness, by responsibility to the community and the environment. But history shows us one clear truth:
Where there is freedom, there is prosperity.
Where there is enterprise, there is abundance.
Where people are free to dream, societies thrive.
So today, I stand before you with a simple message: defend the freedom to prosper.
Encourage it in your children. Teach it in your schools. Celebrate it in your communities.
Because every time someone takes a risk, starts a business, writes a poem, builds a hall of fame, or brings people together—they are proving that freedom works.
Closing
I opened the Australian Poetry Hall of Fame because I believed in the power of creativity and enterprise. It is living proof that when people are free to dream and to act, prosperity follows.
So let us hold fast to freedom—not just as an idea, but as a way of life.
Because freedom is not only the foundation of prosperity—it is the foundation of hope.
The Ballad of LibertyLand
On Animal Farm, the banners flew,
With promises bold and grand,
Yet envy whispered in the crew,
And shadowed all the land.
They cried, “All equal, all the same,
No man shall rise too high!”
But envy burned a secret flame,
And truth became a lie.
Bridge / Refrain
Break the chains, let the soul command,
Raise the torch with a steady hand.
From the night, to the dawn so grand,
We march to LibertyLand!
Then came the tyrant’s iron hand,
The fascist fist of might.
He ruled by fear, he scarred the land,
And quenched the stars of night.
Progressive minds then claimed to see,
The future pure and planned.
“Trust us, for we know how to be,
We’ll guide the foolish band.”
Yet pride betrayed their towering dream,
Their schemes collapsed in sand,
For no one holds the endless stream
Of life in mortal hand.
Bridge / Refrain
Break the chains, let the soul command,
Raise the torch with a steady hand.
From the night, to the dawn so grand,
We march to LibertyLand!
From out the dust a vision shone,
Of virtues tried and fair,
Where every soul might stand alone,
And breathe untroubled air.
Not envy’s theft, nor plunder’s cry,
But hands that freely give.
In LibertyLand the hearts supply
The way that men should live.
No wrath of mobs, no raging throng,
But peace where men agree.
Each voice may speak, each song belong,
In tempered harmony.
No pride of planners ruling fate,
No arrogance of throne,
But humble minds that calculate
What limits are their own.
Bridge / Refrain
Break the chains, let the soul command,
Raise the torch with a steady hand.
From the night, to the dawn so grand,
We march to LibertyLand!
So fell the walls of Animal Farm,
Its lies now dead and gone.
The world awoke to freedom’s charm,
And hailed the rising dawn.
The Anthem of the Free
Now lift your eyes, O noble band,
And sing with voices grand:
“No chains remain, no master’s hand,
We live in LibertyLand!”
