Two weeks ago, I profiled the first two speakers James Bovard and Ralph Raico at our upcoming June 1-4 conference: Restoring the Republic: Foreign Policy and Civil Liberties at the Hyatt Regency Reston in Reston, Virginia.
Jim and Ralph will be followed by two of the most principled and courageous people in the libertarian movement: Lew Rockwell and Bob Higgs.
Lew Rockwell has been one of my big personal heroes since I first discovered the libertarian movement when I was a young attorney in Texas. His Ludwig von Mises Institute has been one of the major intellectual forces bringing the works of Ludwig von Mises, Friedrich Hayek, and the Austrian school of economic thought to the attention of the world. The very first conference I ever attended was a Mises Institute conference, where I had the good fortune of meeting the late Mises Institute associate Murray Rothbard, one of the Austrian movements greatest scholars. Lews courage, forthrightness, and unswerving commitment to liberty are displayed every day in his fantastic daily Internet page, LewRockwell.com.
Bob Higgs has also long been one of my big personal heroes. His book Crisis and Leviathan, which has become one of the classic libertarian works on liberty and government power, is among the best books I have ever read. What has always attracted me to Bobs work is his deep sense of moral outrage over government wrongdoing. That is, anyone who reads Bobs articles and books or hears him speak will not only immediately recognize the existence of a first rate academic mind but also and in my opinion, more important the deep commitment to moral principles that characterizes Bob Higgs.
In the weeks ahead, Ill be previewing our other speakers 24 in all. Someone remarked to me the other day, Jacob, I have never seen such an outstanding list of speakers for a conference. Of course, Im biased but I agree. Ever since I discovered the libertarian movement some 30 years ago, I have never seen a conference with this type of all-star cast.
Will all the speakers agree on everything? Of course not, especially given that the speakers consist of libertarians, liberals, and conservatives. But one thing I can predict with confidence: By the end of this conference, these speakers, overall, will have presented the finest case on how to lead our nation out of the foreign-policy morass in which it has been plunged and on how to ensure that our rights and freedoms are no longer infringed.
What is especially exciting for me is the high level of excitement for the conference among the speakers. I hope you will join us. Everyone who attends this conference is not only going to have one of the most enjoyable intellectual experiences of his lifetime, he will also be participating in an important event designed to restore our nation to its rightful role in the world.
$495 covers all ten Hyatt Regency meals at the conference plus 24 of the greatest speeches youll ever hear. For more details: www.fff.org/conference2007/.
