On New Year's Eve, I'm leading a conversation on freedom and democracy at the Party with a Purpose.

The "New Year's Resovolution - Party with a Purpose" is a two-part event. On Monday from 2 to 8 at the Underground Events Center (2407 1st Avenue, between Battery and Wall, there's a free all-ages day of art and activism workshops and information tables from such groups as the Backbone Campaign and Reclaim the Media. Then from 8 pm until dawn, the party rages with Clinton Fearon and Boogie Brown Band ( http://www.clintonfearon.com/), punctuated with a speech by humanitarian activist Bert Sachs (http://bertoniraq.blogspot.com/).

For details and ticket information, look at http://www.thinksmall.org/PWAP/infomaction.htm and http://www.thinksmall.org/PWAP/pwap-details.htm .

I'm doing a little in-between roundtable discussion on freedom and democracy from 6 pm to 7:30, looking at where they've been, where they're going, and what to do about it. I have not invited any guests, but I think that a few surprise guests may pop in.

The evening was inspired by Naomi Wolf's new book, "The End of America: Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot" (http://www.powells.com/biblio/62-9781933392790-0 ). Wolf look at " how events of the last six years parallel steps taken in the early years of the 20th century's worst dictatorships such as Germany, Russia, China, and Chile."

My own reading of late has included the 2004 Kevin Phillips book "American Dynasty: Aristocracy, Fortune, and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush" (www.powells.com/biblio/17-9780670032648-8). In her book, Wolf warns of an encroaching fascism in America. Phillips is more specifically focused on one family, the Walker-Bush clan, going back to the beginnings of the 20th century. Phillips lays out a family history of power aggrandizement, blood for oil, corrupt cronyism, arms trading, collaboration with the Nazis, foreign intrigue, and a long, deep vein of sketchy clandestine operations. The scary thing is less that the Bushes are capable of such things, but rather that this is just one American family, one small part of an intricate weave of power, politics, and the seduction of money that extends throughout the American experience. I find it more than interesting that since leaving office, Bill Clinton and George Herbert Walker Bush have become good friends, all differences forgotten.

The point of the party with a purpose is to end the year with a renewed passion for positive change. And even if you already have plans for the hours leading up to midnight, think about stopping by for the earlier events. -John Boylan

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