Thursday, April 28

Welcome Reception and Dinner with Reason President and CEO David Nott and U.S. Representative Thomas Massie (R-KY)
Join us for a casual reception and dinner buffet to see old friends and make new ones!

Friday, April 29

Session 1: “Private Enterprise and the New Space Industry”
Jeff Greason, XCOR in conversation with Reason Co-Founder Bob Poole

In Robert Heinlein’s science fiction classic The Man Who Sold the Moon (1949), private enterprise conceived and carried out the first flight to the moon. But for most of our lives, space has been the domain of government and paid for by taxpayers. That is changing with the emergence of the New Space industry—companies like Blue Origin, SpaceX, Virgin Galactic, and XCOR. Now that entrepreneurs are seriously engaged, what is the future of space commerce?

Session 2: ”Policy Change is an Inside Game”
Panel Discussion with Reason Foundation’s Vice President of Research Julian Morris, Vice President of Policy Adrian Moore, and Director of Government Reform Len Gilroy.

Policy change doesn’t just happen because some elected official decides to write a law. Finding policy makers who are willing to do the hard work of changing policy towards greater liberty isn’t easy, and that is only the beginning. Hear some of the gory details from inside the sausage factory, illustrated by Reason’s latest success at pension reform in Arizona and other tales of policy change success.

Session 3: “Helicopter Parents, Ignorant Students, & The End of Enlightenment”
Camille Paglia, University of the Arts in conversation with Reason.com Editor-In-Chief Nick Gillespie. University professor, social critic, and best-selling author Camille Paglia tells Nick Gillespie what’s wrong with college today and how to fix it.

“The Campus War on Free Expression”
Lunch with Reason Staff Editor Robby Soave in conversation with Reason Editor-In-Chief Matt Welch
Political correctness, censorship, and anti-sex hysteria is taking over universities. How did we get here, and what can we do to liberate the academy?

Reception and Dinner at the Union League
“Government Growth and Diminished Liberty”
Remarks by Walter Williams, John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics, George Mason University

Saturday, April 30

Session 1: “The Aftermath of Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association:
Why the Supreme Court’s Split Decision is Far from the Last Word on Reforming Education Labor Policy”

Teacher Rebecca Friedrichs in conversation with Reason Foundation’s Director of Education Lisa Snell

On March 29, the Supreme Court deadlocked over the question of a 1970s-era rule that authorizes unions to require municipal employees, teachers, college instructors and transit workers to pay a “fair share fee” to help cover the cost of collective bargaining. The 4-4 ruling is the strongest evidence yet that Justice Antonin Scalia’s death has stymied the court’s conservatives. Plaintiff Rebecca Friedrichs will explore the case as well as future legal activity and education reform strategies around free speech, agency fees, tenure, teacher dismissal, and other destructive labor policies that hold teachers and students back.

Session 2: “The Rapidly Increasing Irrelevance of the Federal Reserve” Reason Senior Fellow John Tamny in conversation with Reason Foundation’s Vice President of Policy Adrian Moore

There’s a lot of mythology surrounding the Federal Reserve. Seen as all-powerful by an electorate that despises it more than any government entity not the IRS, the actual truth is that the Fed’s power is rapidly dwindling. Though it’s said that the Fed sets the price of credit, controls the so-called “money supply,” and is the driver of a 7-year long bull market, the actual truth will reveal the Fed as increasingly irrelevant to all three. While the Fed serves no useful purpose on its best days, and is dangerous on its worst, market forces are happily rendering it an anachronism.

Session 3: “Bluff, Check, Flirt, Fold: The Cognitive Science of High-Stakes Poker”

World Series of Poker Champion Annie Duke in conversation with Reason.com Editor-In-Chief Nick Gillespie.

Annie Duke—the “Duchess of Poker”—talks with Nick Gillespie about how to make smart decisions in the toughest of situations.

Lunch with World’s Worst Mom Lenore Skenazy
Free-Range Kids is a commonsense approach to parenting in these overprotective times. Founder Lenore Skenazy is “America’s Worst Mom.” The New York City-based Reason Contributing Editor, national columnist, and reality TV show host got that title after letting her 9-year-old son take the subway, alone. In response to the enormous media blowback, she wrote the book Free-Range Kids, and started a blog that launched the anti-helicopter parenting movement. What is really happening to parents these days—and how will their kids be affected?

Reception, Private Tour, and Dinner at The Barnes Foundation
“Our Republican Constitution: Securing the Liberty and Sovereignty of We the People”

Remarks by Randy Barnett, Carmack Waterhouse Professor