Freedom Fest

Senator Rand Paul to be at FreedomFest 2013

tami — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 19:02:18 +0000

Senator Rand Paul – the most influential libertarian leader to emerge in the 21st century — has just confirmed that he will be attending and speaking at this year’s big show, including a keynote speech and private luncheon.

I spent a week with Senator Paul at a trip to Israel in January, when he told me how much he and his wife loved FreedomFest last year, and were excited about this year’s theme “Are We Rome?”

He told me that he looks forward to spending time with the attendees — freedom lovers and concerned citizens — about the direction our country is going.

Senator Paul of Kentucky is speaking out like never before: in Israel, at CPAC, at Cato, and Howard University…and is the most prominent defender of liberty and limited government on Capitol Hill in the fights over taxes, immigration, foreign wars, and government intrusion in our lives (TSA, drones, etc.). He is a leading candidate for the Republican nomination for President in 2016, and will lay out his approach in his keynote address, “All Roads Lead to Rome Except One.”

Private Luncheon with Senator Rand Paul on Saturday

On Saturday, July 13, he has agreed to speak and meet attendees at a private luncheon. His topic “Obama’s Private Agenda…and Mine.” This luncheon is limited to only 180 attendees, so I suggest you act now.

All special breakfast and luncheons are posted here so be sure to take a look. Tami tells me they are already filling up.

Update on New Speakers, Panels and Events

My wife and I were in Hawaii last week (celebrating our 40th wedding anniversary). I met up with Dick Rowland at the Grassroot Institute, the free-market think tank of Hawaii, and Ken Schoolland, who teaches at Hawaii Pacific University, and both are exciting about coming to FreedomFest.

While in Maui, I had dinner with Ken Elzinga, professor extraordinaire at the University of Virginia, and he shared my sentiments. He may hold the Guinness Book of World Records for teaching the most students — approaching 50,000 over his illustrious career. He is also the author of three murder mystery novels applying economics to solve crimes (“Murder on the Margin” is a classic.) Out of the blue he told me he plans to attend this year’s FreedomFest.

We’ve just added a new breakfast meeting Friday morning, July 12: “Breakfast with the Financial Gurus,” with Bert Dohmen, editor of the Wellington Letter (he predicted the 2008 crisis at FreedomFest); Alexander Green, investment director of the Oxford Club, best beat-the-market record in 10 years; Adrian Day, money manager extraordinaire; and moderated by Chris Versace, editor of PowerTrends Profits Newsletter. Click here to take a look at all special events and register for them online.

New This Year! Special Opening Ceremonies with Steve Forbes

On Wednesday evening, starting at 6 pm, we are having our opening gala cocktail reception – plus our Opening Ceremonies with Steve Forbes, who will address us in the beautiful spacious Augustus Ballroom. His keynote address is on “Power Ambition Glory: The Stunning Parallels Between the Ancient World and Today.”

Over 1200 attendees have already signed up — we expect a record crowd this year with John Stossel and Fox Business taping his show, plus commodity guru Jim Rogers and supply-side economist Art Laffer, and of course Steve Forbes, Charles Murray, Steve Moore, John Allison, Nick Gillespie, Wayne Root, and many others. You can expect over 150 speakers and 100 exhibitors, including all the major think tanks Cato, Heritage, Reason, FEE, Students for Liberty, FreedomWorks and many others!

Make your plans now to arrive into Las Vegas on Wednesday afternoon.

Pre-Conference Events

For those who arrive early on Wednesday, I will hold three special pre-conference sessions on the following topics:

– ”The Captains of Capitalism: From the Robber Barons to Today’s Titans”

– ”Candy Keynes: The Fatal Attraction of Keynesian Economics, and What It Means for Your Business and Investments”

– ”The New Deal in Old Rome”

For freedom lovers and the financially independent all roads lead to Las Vegas this July 10 – 13. Don’t miss out!

To register call today toll-free 1-866-266-5101

or visit www.freedomfest.com

to register online.

Come join us and meet personally Senator Rand Paul and his wife, and all the bright stars in “the greatest libertarian show on earth.” See you in Vegas.

The Future of the West: Are We Rome?

tami — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 13:37:12 +0000

”I love FreedomFest–wonderfully interesting people and non-stop intellectual stimulation. The debates are especially great and one of the reasons I keep coming back.” –John Mackey, CEO of Whole Foods Market

Nobody has the variety and controversies like the debates and panels at FreedomFest. Sit back and watch the sparks fly. You are in for a treat this year!

Here are just a few -

– The Big Debate: “The Future of the West: Are We Rome?” with Steve Forbes, Prof. Carl Richard (U of Louisiana), Jim Rogers, and Senator Rand Paul

– “Did Christianity Cause the Fall of Rome?” “Yes” says Douglas R. Casey, investment guru and author of “Totally Incorrect”; “No,” states Harry Veryser, U of Detroit-Mercy professor and Catholic scholar. British historian Edward Gibbon blamed Christianity for the fall of Rome in his classic work, “The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.” Was he right?

– “The Origin and Evolution of Life: Is Galapagos a Detour?” “Yes” says Michael Denton, British microbiologist and author of “Nature’ Destiny”; “No” says Michael Shermer, editor of Skeptic magazine and author of “Why Darwin Matters.” The two Michaels will debate if there’s more to life than Darwinian materialism. The sparks will fly.

– “Democracy and Liberty, Friends or Foes?” James S. Henry, attorney and former Director of McKinsey & Co. (friends), FSU economics professor Randy Holcombe (foes), moderated by FSU economist James Gwartney. 100 years after the passing of the 17th amendment, which allowed the direct election of senators, the controversy continues. Can we trust the public to vote?

– “Tax Havens, Good or Bad?” Cato’s Dan Mitchell (good), James S. Henry (bad). The Economist claims that the deficits could be eliminated if we stopped companies and individuals from going offshore and dodging $20 trillion. But defenders warn that without tax havens, governments would be even more confiscatory. Who’s right?

– “Paul Krugman and Krugmania, Pro and Con.” U of Hawaii professor Jim Marsh defends Krugman, Gene Epstein (economics editor of Barron’s) attacks him. Can anything good come out of Krugman’s mouth? Find out!

– “Altruism vs. Selfishness: What is the Ideal Model for Capitalism?” Yaron Brook (Ayn Rand Institute) makes the case for selfishness; Mark Skousen makes the case for altruism in business. Moderated by Elizabeth Ames. This will be the ultimate debate on Ayn Rand’s philosophy.

– “High-Frequency Trading, Beneficial or Harmful?” Two New York traders debate this controversy: Arthur Breitman makes the case for day trading while Steve Wunsch makes the case against. Moderated by Gene Epstein, economics editor of Barron’s.

– “Shall We Adopt the Gold Standard?” Tom Woods, Mises Institute fellow and bestselling author, says “yes,” Warren Coats, former student under Milton Friedman and acclaimed IMF official, says “no.” Moderated by Gene Epstein.

–”Best Asset Class Debate: Stocks, Gold/Commodities, Real Estate” with Bert Dohmen (stocks), Peter Schiff (gold), and Russell Gray (real estate).

Last but not least, we are working on our annual Mock Trial. In the past, we’ve had capitalism, religion, public unions, and Wall Street on trial, with a judge, prosecuting and defending attorney, star witnesses, and a jury selected from audience. This is always one of the highlights of the conference. This year we are putting “The Republican Party on Trial” with Steve Moore (prosecuting attorney), and defending attorney and star witnesses TBD. Stay tuned!

We also have a dozen great panels at this year’s show, such as the following:

“Libertarian Hedge Fund Panel” with none other than legendary commodity guru Jim Rogers (former partner with George Soros); supply-side economist Arthur B. Laffer; Donald Smith and Cliff Asness, two highly successful hedge fund managers in New York.

“Libertarian CEOs Panel: What is the Best Model for Capitalism?” with John Allison, former CEO of BB&T bank and new president of Cato (Objectivism/Rand), Raj Sisodia, co-author of “Conscious Capitalism”; and Tony Woodlief, former president of Koch’s Market-Based Management and president of the Bill of Rights Institute

“Radical New Ways to Educate” with Daniel Greenberg, founder of the revolutionary Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts, where students have complete freedom to create their own curriculum (they are not even forced to take any classes!); Lori Bossy, who has a masters degree in education and is the director of the top Montessori school in Las Vegas; and Jo Thoburn, president of the Fairfax Christian School, the most successful Christian school in the country.

“Market Friendly Colleges and Universities Panel” — George Mason (Garrett Jones), Hillsdale (Timothy Casper), Chapman (Tom Campbell, dean, law school), Universidad Francisco Marroquin (Lisa Hazlett), Northwood (Dr. Tim Nash). What makes free-market institutions better for students and the country? Not to be missed!

“Social Media Panel” with Matt Kibbe (FreedomWorks), Floyd G. Browne (Western Journalism), Craig Huey (media guru). How to blog for influence and income. Always popular.

“Austrian Investment Panel” with Harry Veryser (U. of Detroit-Mercy), Mark Skousen (editor, Forecasts & Strategies), Ty Andros ( and Adrian Day (Asset Management).

“Real Estate Investing: The Great, the Good, and the Heroic” with Robert Helms and Russell Gray (“The Real Estate Guys”), and Jack Reed, real estate expert and author of “How to Protect Your Life Savings from Hyperinflation and Depression.”

“Capitalism in Literature,” with Paul Cantor (U of Virginia), Stephen Cox (UC San Diego), Michael Moses (Duke University), and Jo Ann Skousen (moderator).

“Space X: Private Alternatives to NASA,” with Charles Murray (author of “Apollo” and other books); Jose Cordiero (Singularity University), moderated by Michael Shermer.

“Healthy Living to 100 and Beyond,” with Leigh Erin Conneally, M. D., editor, Newport Natural Health Newsletter; Richard Viguerie, author of the new book, “Why Conservatives Live Longer.”

“Safe Places to Live and Invest in a Dangerous World” with Doug Casey, Jeff Berwick, Bobby Casey, and Jack Reed (part of our “Escape from America” series — although this session will address safe places in the US and abroad).

“Bubbles, Inflation and Global Monetary Order,” part of FEE Day with Gerald O’Driscoll, Steven Horwitz and Tsvet Tsonevski.

Come join us, will you? FreedomFest is only a few months away. Now is the time to sign up. Call today 1-866-266-5101 or click here to register online

11 New Speakers, Panels & Debates

tami — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 14:06:36 +0000

We’re getting a huge response to our announcement that John Stossel is bring his #1 Fox Business show to FreedomFest, with hundreds of attendees signing up so far.

And that’s just the beginning of what the Washington Post calls “the greatest libertarian show on earth.”

One of the reasons people keep coming back to FreedomFest is to enjoy our unique panels and debates you won’t find at any other conference.
Here’s 11 new events for this year’s show, all in keeping with our theme this year “Are We Rome?”

1. A special joint luncheon with the two founders of the supply-side revolution: Steve Moore, the Wall Street Journal’s most influential economist, and Art Laffer, inventor of the Laffer curve, will be speaking on and signing their new book (just released days before FreedomFest) “Progressive Failure,” all about the dangerous course the West is taking by adopting a deficit-ridden, bloated big government, easy-money policies.

2. Having just returned from the Bahamas for our Global Summit, I was fascinated with this week’s Economist magazine’s cover story on tax havens, “The Missing $20 Trillion: How to Stop Companies and People Dodging Tax.” We will debate the subject with two of the finest experts, Dan Mitchell (Cato) vs. Jim Henry (Tax Justice Network) on “Tax Havens, Good or Bad?”

3. Who are the Modern-day Gladiators? Athletes and sporting events like the Superbowl and the World Cup are the modern-day equivalent of the circuses and games of Rome. We’re organizing a top-notch panel of experts to discuss the good, bad and ugly of culture of sport, including: J. C. Bradbury, Kennesaw State professor and the country’s foremost sports economist; Bill Jenkinson, baseball’s premier historian and author of “Ultimate Power: Ranking the All-Time Greatest Distance Home Run Hitters”; and Marc Lichtenfeld, a financial writer for the Oxford Club who is an experienced boxing referee. Are sports the alternative to war? (To paragraph Keynes, “better that a man tyrannize over his favorite sports team than his fellow man.”) Come to this session!

4. For all those hungry investors out there, we’re putting together an incredible panel of financial gurus for our “Libertarian Hedge Fund Panel” with none other than legendary commodity guru Jim Rogers (former partner with George Soros), Donald Smith and Cliff Asness (two highly successful hedge fund managers in New York), and Steve Forbes as moderator.

5. University of Hawaii Professor Jim Marsh is a free-market economist who thinks that Paul Krugman has made significant contributions to economics. So I’ve put together a debate with Barron’s economics editor and major critic Gene Epstein on “Krugmania: Good or Bad for America?” Not to be missed!

6. Financial guru and “international man” Douglas R. Casey and Harry Veryser, professor at University of Detroit-Mercy and devote Catholic scholar, will face on “Did Christianity Cause the Fall of Rome?”

7. Michael Shermer, editor of Skeptic magazine and columnist for Scientific American, will debate Australian microbiologist Michael Denton (author of “Nature’s Destiny” and “Evolution in Crisis”) on the hot topic, “The Origin and Evolution of Life: Is Galapagos a Detour?”

8. We are organizing some great panels, such as: “Austrian economics for Investors” with Peter Schiff, and Robert Blumen; “Libertarian CEOs Panel” with John Allison (BB&T), Raj Sisodia (co-author with John Mackey “Conscious Capitalism”), and representative of Koch’s “Market-Based Management” (TBA).

9. I’m also excited about our panel “Radical New Ways to Educate” with Daniel Greenberg, founder of the revolutionary Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts, where students have complete freedom to create their own curriculum (they are not even forced to take any classes!); Lori Bossy, who has a masters degree in education and is the director of the top Montessori school in Las Vegas; and Jo Thoburn, president of the Fairfax Christian School, the most successful Christian school in the country.

10. Florida State’s Jim Gwartney and Randy Holcombe will lead a session on “The Decline in Economic Freedom in America: Are We On the Path to Rome?” and a debate on “Democracy and Liberty: Friend or Foe?” in honor of the 100^th anniversary of the 17^th amendment (direct election of senators). Is democracy compatible with liberty or in conflict with liberty? Jim Gwartney is also organizing a session with Tawni Ferrarini, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute, on “Common Sense Economics for Life: A Revelutionary New Tool for Teachers and Students.”

11. Lately I’ve been reading the best book on the subject, “We Are All Romans,” by Carl Richard, professor of history at University of Louisiana. He’s the most knowledgeable expert on Roman history, philosophy, and literature I know. He has agreed to come to FreedomFest and speak on the timely subject, “What the American Founders Learned from the Roman Empire.” He will also be part of our panel/debate, “Are We Rome?”

We are also working on our popular mock “Republican Party on Trial” for this year….as well as panels on the 100^th anniversary of the Federal Reserve and the income tax. Stay tuned for more exciting programs at FreedomFest 2013.

John Stossel

tami — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 20:44:20 +0000

Lots of news to report about this year’s big show. First and foremost:

When we ask past attendees, what famous libertarian they want to speak at FreedomFest, John Stossel is their #1 choice – by far.

Your wish is our command: We are happy to announce that John Stossel is coming to FreedomFest and will be taping a special edition of his Fox Business show, STOSSEL, at FreedomFest on the first day of the conference, Thursday, July 11, 2013. And you all are invited!

John Stossel is famous for his investigative reporting on ABC’s primetime newsmagazine 20/20, and since 2009, on Fox Business Network. I always love his confronting government officials and business leaders for their bad policies and stupid mistakes. He is the host of “Stossel” (Thursdays at 9 PM/ET), a weekly program highlighting current consumer issues with a libertarian viewpoint. Stossel also appears regularly on Fox News Channel (FNC) providing great analysis and debunking myths about the government and the economy. His latest book is “No, They Can’t: Why Government Fails But Individuals Succeed.”

John will be drawing from our list of great speakers for his show, including Steve Forbes, Art Laffer, Jim Rogers, Steve Moore, Charles Murray and many more. As a FreedomFest attendee, you will receive a complimentary ticket to the STOSSEL show with preferred seating.