John McAfee, U.S. anti-virus software guru, addresses a news conference outside the Supreme Court of Justice in Guatemala City. Reuters/William Gularte Tech entrepreneur John McAfee is running for president in the US as a member of the Libertarian Party. This is an op-ed article he wrote and gave us permission to run.

This article may disturb some people. For that I apologize in advance, but I feel compelled, at this point, to step outside the narrow path of acceptability. I am moved to bare my heart and confess my thoughts.

I am writing this to the disaffected, the disenfranchised, the angry and frustrated. I am speaking to the heart of Americans who feel alienated from the government that we ourselves created.

I'm speaking to those of you who may have left the comfort of your home on a dark night and wandered down lonely streets, or those who have glimpsed, in the people closest to you, the depth and mysteries within that person, and felt an exquisite communion - even for a moment.

I’m speaking to the people who have questioned, and irrespective of the cost, have sought answers, or to those who have traveled extensively and seen and experienced ways of living which seem alien to our culture.

And I'm speaking to those of you who have viewed themselves in the mirror of your own existence, and experienced a profound epiphany of self revelation - or who at least looked with the hope of finding one.

I will tell you who I am - without polish or apologies - without pride or shame, and I will tell you why, after 70 years of inhabiting this planet, I am speaking out.

Everything of value in life I have learned from experience. I am not a great student or a great reader. I was thirty years old before I read my first book, cover to cover. It was Darwin's “Origin of Species”. I was dealing drugs in Mexico at the time and it was the only English language book I could get my hands on.

I was arrested in Mexico and severely punished for my actions. It was the first time that I fully understood the value of freedom and privacy, because in prison, both are removed in their entirety.

I have traveled extensively, and through experience have learned that America’s interference in the internal affairs of foreign nations comes at a price. While living in Belize, one of the most corrupt nations in the world, I was approached by a local politician who politely asked for a 2 million dollar donation to the ruling political party. I declined.

Belize Shutterstock

One week later, in March of 2012, an elite Belizean paramilitary force, who had been trained by the FBI in Quantico, stormed my property. They shot my dog in front of my eyes with an AR-15 supplied by the U.S. State Department. They destroyed a half million dollars worth of my property and then left.

The following day the same political representative stopped by to apologize profusely for the “mistaken identity” raid, and then asked if I had reconsidered my donation. I suggested that he get the f--- off of my property. Thus began my war with Belize that ended in the murder of my neighbor and the resulting manhunt for me that garnered international attention.

I understand full well what twisted webs our State Department can weave.

I learned that our bodies belong to ourselves, and that no government can own our bodies.

Throughout history, all attempts to criminalize what we do to or with our bodies have not in any way changed what we choose to do with our bodies. The criminalization of drug use has not diminished our consumption of drugs. It has merely created a brutal drug cartel and filled our prisons with nonviolent citizens. No legislation that attempts to control what we do to, or with our bodies can succeed. We should have learned this with our failed attempt to criminalize alcohol consumption in the 30’s.

Orange County (California) sheriff's deputies dumping illegal alcohol, 1932 Wikimedia Commons

My own understanding of this issue came from a variety of experiences, but it was my wife who brought things fully into focus.

My wife was forced into prostitution at the age of 20. For ten years she was beaten, threatened and abused on a daily basis. She was isolated from her family and friends and forced into unspeakable situations. She was a virtual slave. Her pimp, brutal and cruel, like every pimp, was the agent of these horrors.

The profession of pimping is created by the criminalization of prostitution. Sex workers are abused by customers because they know that the women can't call the police for help. A tough pimp offers the illusion of protection when in reality sex workers are still abused by their customers. In fact, the police themselves frequently force sex workers into performing unwilling sexual acts to avoid being arrested.

I personally rescued Janice three and a half years ago. I married her and she is sitting by my side now as I write this. I love her deeply.

I learned from experience that we must keep our agreements, because there is no other way to have a peaceful society. I learned that we cannot harm one another or unjustly take each others property, because I have been harmed much and much has been taken from me.

I learned that any experiment of value in this life will be carried out at our own expense, and that every action, good or bad, has its consequences.

These are the realities of life as I have experienced them.

It is my belief that any government created by people should accept the same realities that it's people must live by and act accordingly.

I now ask you - is our government acting on the same principles that you and I must live by?

Capitol Hill in Washington D.C. Getty/Brendon Hoffman

Are you, when you have no money, able to print your own, as our government, in effect, does? Are you able to change what is right or wrong at your whim as our Congress does through the passage of conflicting legislation as each new administration comes and goes? Do you have the right to spy on whomever you choose? Do you exist, parasitically, off of the labors of others?

We need to look closely at these and the myriad other ways in which our government does not reflect the hearts and minds of it’s citizens.

Our government was created to serve us. We did not imbue it with the power to be our mother and father, deciding what is best for us and in what manner we should live. We did not create it to be our boss or our guardian. As adults, we need none of the above. But our government has obviously assumed those powers. Slowly and insidiously. If the spirit of America is to survive, there must be decisive change.

I am running for President and I am a member of the Libertarian party. The Libertarian Party stands for Freedom, Privacy and Personal Responsibility. Libertarians believe that government best serves by leaving us alone to live our lives as we see fit.

Libertarians believe that our bodies belong to ourselves, not to the government. We believe that we should not harm one another and that we should not take each others stuff. We believe our current government is engorged, bloated and inefficient and that it no longer serves us. We believe in the right to freedom and privacy. We believe that we are the last hope for this failing country.

I have bared my heart and soul to you. If doing so has been of any value, then at least consider investigating the Libertarian Party, and perhaps you may even be moved to join this crusade to save our country.