"A man's worst difficulties begin when he is able to do as he likes." -Thomas Huxley at the formal opening of Johns Hopkins University. FREEDOM SEX AND A MEAT CLEAVER is a young man's quest for personal freedom and self-discovery. It's the riveting stories of Pierce Colter, a naïve American, seeking adventures in Southeast Asia during the tumultuous period from 1973 to 1978. Inspired by actual events, his adventures extend beyond Thailand to the neighboring country of Laos during the CIA's secret war with the communist Pathet Lao. From border towns of Cambodia during Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge takeover of Phnom Penh to hidden Chinese waterfront opium dens on the island of Penang off the coast of Malaysia. And on and on, and on to one too many slings in Singapore. In his quest, Pierce discovers, as with all freedom, there's a price to pay with each step.