My Time at FreedomFest – Part I
If you follow the AF Twitter account (AFF_DC), as I encourage everyone to do, then you should be acquainted with yours truly – the tweeting correspondent for AF at FreedomFest (FF) in Las Vegas. From July 8 – 10, I spent my days amongst a few thousand fellow classical liberals while listening to great talks from scholars and occasionally sparring verbally. Anyone who is anyone in the liberty movement is at least acquainted with the names of those who spoke at FF this year. Libertarian stars like Steve Forbes, John Mackey, Peter Schiff, Tom Palmer, Dinesh D’Souza, Charles Gasparino, Steve Moore, Tom Woods, David Kelley, Charles Murray, and Joel Stern were all present this year. The speakers, who were all very easily accessible to talk to personally, were complimented by the presence of Liberty-oriented groups, from the Austrian Mises Institute to the more conservative Heritage Foundation. I will be blogging recaps of FF all this week to help give more exposure to some of the more interesting talks.
Being a libertarian conference for adults who are largely engaged in the private sector, FreedomFest focused heavily on economics and finance. However, I encourage all levels of economically-knowledgeable libertarians to attend next year. There were many forums on personal finance, as well as policy lectures, which were easy to digest and very helpful to a philosophy major like myself. There were also some very sound lectures on political theory – particularly from the rockstars of Objectivism imported for Ayn Rand day. The Las Vegas atmosphere was incredibly conducive to “breaking the ice” and creating a sense of camaraderie amongst those who truly understand sound economics and axioms of non-aggression.
The organizers of FF are looking to expand attendance by thirty percent next year. So let me use my soapbox to give a concise endorsement:
Somewhere, between the futuristic models of Patri Friedman’s Seasteading Institute and the cries for nullification by historian Tom Woods, FreedomFest can remind anyone why they occupy the grossly underrepresented faction of the American political system called “libertarianism.”