"Democracies" are inherently despotic (see de Toqueville) and despots despise capitalism. A limited republic (lower case here) promotes equitable wealth.
A recent acquisition has (so far) been very approachable - a recommendation I got from a blog post that I can't recall..
"A Brief History of Numbers" by Leo Corry, Oxford University Press 2015. A fairly rigorous presentation from a strongly historical perspective. Excellent for this math hobbyist.
Fermat's Last Theorem is easily demonstrated using the binomial theorem - simple algebra. It is dismissed as a proof because most fail to "see" or "understand" variables - particularly mathematicians. Fermat gave us a hint as to his "demonstration" by where he wrote his comment ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diophantus_II.VIII ). The difference of two squares can - in some cases - be a square - Pythagorean triples! The difference (or sum) of two integers raised to a power greater than two - nope.
I'm 67 and love programming - all self taught. Without knowing your father let me suggest this with a caveat; there is no right way to learn something as we are each different. What works for one fails for another. Here are my suggestions. First, Python. A "class" or online course doesn't really allow for setting a personal learning pace. I found "Python Programming: An Introduction to Computer Science" by Zeile to be perfect for me. Second find something - a goal - to motivate the process; a website for a local charity, a payment site for a small municipal water company or for the local town office or volunteer fire company etc. Build it out with Django. And along the way build out a personal website with Pelican. Turn a Chromebook into a linux machine with GalliumOS and use only text editors - IDE's just add unneeded complexity. If you have a compelling reason to learn something - you will. When he builds something - put it on Github. It becomes his resume - along with his dialog of "the road to learning" he might post on his Pelican blog! Results trump certificates and degrees.