Informal Post-Game Show
I still have a ton of work to catch up on, since I had to let everything else slide while running around for the Night of Clarity which was this past weekend. We are also getting everything put up on our websites (the PDF of the new book, the ability to purchase a hard copy, a sign-up for the forthcoming Lara-Murphy newsletter, footage from the event, etc.) but that will take a week or so.
In the meantime, let me say just a few words. By all accounts, the event was a smashing success. A lot of the attendees had never been to quite such an undertaking, including my mom who told me, “I didn’t realize economics speeches could be so interesting. We’ll come to the next one!”
Carlos and I handpicked the speakers not only for their scholarship, but also for their public speaking ability. They performed beautifully. We held each speaker to 35 minutes, which was perfect for a boom-boom-boom rhythm. Paul Cleveland opened with his charming Southern accent and set the mood by comparing the modern worship of government to the ancient pagan worship of Baal. Then, just in case some people were worried we would go religious on them, Richard Ebeling opened up with a joke involving a conservative, a libertarian, and a liberal Democrat buying Jesus drinks in a bar. (I won’t spoil it by giving the punchline. I guess you’ll just have to come to our event next time, won’t you?)
I went next. The straight man for the event, a local banker, had mentioned when he introduced Carlos that Carlos had just missed out on going to the Olympics for weightlifting. I confirmed this to the audience, mentioning that when Carlos and I were moving the books from the FedEx truck earlier that week, Carlos was uncharacteristically wearing a t-shirt and shorts, and I realized that even though he was a grandfather, he could “kick my butt.” Good times, good times.
Then Nelson Nash went, and he cracked up the crowd with his analysis of tax-qualified retirement plans. My dad kept saying for the whole weekend, “Lie! Lie!” in an imitation of Nash. Then it was on to Tom Woods. In my intro, I made some self-deprecating remarks about Tom’s educational pedigree (i.e. “why is a Harvard guy hanging out with us?”-type stuff) and then we played a truncated version of the zombie interview.
Tom knocked it out of the park. It was one of the best speeches I have seen him give. I am not kidding, when he wrapped it up I was ready to jump up and do something. (As it turns out, what I did was hit the bathroom before signing books. But Tom gave me a sense of purpose as I emptied my bladder.)
We will definitely be doing this again, though we all agreed that the middle of July might not be the best time of year to hold an event in Nashville. Oh, for those who are curious, yes the karaoke was awesome. If anyone has iPhone footage, please let me know.
I really enjoyed the Fri session and wish I could have attended the Sat session. I hope you will do another one in Nashville and yes, early spring or early fall would be nice!!!
It was an interesting crowd. I got the feeling 90+% were finance pros with little to no knowledge of ABCT or any of the usual suspects. To be sure, Tom Woods was at his best – funny, direct, hard hitting, and stirring. Bob’s lecture was the glue that tied it all together with plenty of his dry rub to keep us laughing. I was absolutely blown away by Richard Ebeling. The simulatneous ease and power of his delivery complementing his mastery of ABCT was something to behold. I believe he would be a great regular addition to the circles.
I’ve been using my own Nelson Nash catch phrase in that blue dog drawl – “in the pagan sense of the word.” You can see how he’s developed a cult following. I can’t wait to get into BYOB.
For an econogeek, this was truly a rare event. It was a marriage of ABCT and personal finance. Carlos’ and Bob’s “How Privatized Banking Really Works”, an expansion of Nash’s BYOB, looks to be my future personal economic roadmap. I hope I’ll have a good enough grasp of it that I can take advantage of the seminar the next time it’s offered.
Even though Mackie was back in town, I believe Pat stole the karaoke show. It’s obvious that Bob’s a chip off the block.
Any videos or transcripts of the event forthcoming?
I couldn’t be there but am definitely looking forward to the event footage. The more of the Mises media that I go through, the more I’m looking for practical applications to personal finances that should be a response to the central banking and government interference we face. Thanks for the great work Bob!