About the Freedonia Institute The Freedonia Institute is a grass roots organization based in Tucson, Arizona dedicated to working toward the "Three P's": Preserving CULTURAL CANONS America in 2016 is a fractured, divisive place in which fanatics on all sides snipe at and talk over one one another with tedious regularity. In such an environment, the notion of a shared "canon" or a lingua franca of cultural touchstones -- whether literary, musical, or in other creative genres or fields of knowledge -- may seem reactionary and absurd. We argue that although even if adherents to canons seldom can agree on what should be in them, this concept is nevertheless a necessary effort towards coherence in these confusing times and can include a wild diversity of points of view. Additionally, experiencing (and debating what constitutes) the best of what's been thought and created from previous eras and historical epochs can be a source of great pleasure an