Antoine Clarke
I spoke to LA President Tim Evans twice earlier today.
The Conference is a great success with well over 100 attending on the first day and the dinner being packed. LA Director Sean Gabb’s warnings in the run-up to the event, that fire safety limits might be reached were no exaggeration. At this rate, there is no doubt that a bigger venue (perhaps at the National Liberal Club itself) may have to be considered next year.
…and to think there are people who think that the financial crisis is a blow for capitalism and its supporters.
I’m definitely looking forward to videos of the Conference appearing on-line, although it may be a while for this to be done, given the major logistical efforts underway.
I must admit I can’t decide if the one I’m most looking forward to is Hans Hermann Hoppe, or David Friedman. I had the pleasure of meeting Prof Hoppe on a strange trip to South Korea a number of years ago, which was also attended by science fiction writer Jerry Pournelle and Chris Tame himself. As for David Friedman, Brian Micklethwait once put it succinctly: he may one day be considered Milton Friedman’s most significant testimony. It’s in an LA pamphlet, but I’m unable to locate the title.
Apart from Tim, who I think has taken the vision of the Libertarian International Conference in London to a consistently more ambitious level, the three people I would want people to know have worked incredibly hard are Sean and Mrs Gabb, especially in coping with a heavier than expected administrative burden, with a fair bit of juggling duties, over the weekend and Helen Evans, whose preparations have been so comprehensive, that many potential snags have been avoided. I mention this because it is not always apparent what good has been done, until no one does it.
Are there improvements to make? I think I touched on this before, the answer is yes. Reaching the audience of people that cannot attend is the one I would highlight. The good news is that the means to do this have never been easier to do. Check out what Daily Kos does with Netroots Nation. The beauty is that most of the coverage costs virtually nothing to arrange. Letting bloggers sit at their laptops/streaming video phones and use a wi-fi connection does not actually cost much, nor should it be hard to organize. That’s my number one tip for what to add next year.
Live-blogging or more press releases? No contest.