Hurry! JRC Early-Bird Rate Expires Soon!
Dear Friend of The Rockford Institute and Chronicles:
“I’m going back to Charleston, back where I belong.â€
Gone with the Wind may be one of just a few movies about which Tom Fleming and I disagree, but we are definitely of one mind with Rhett Butler: When he wanted “to see if somewhere there isn’t something left in life of charm and grace,†he headed for Charleston, South Carolina. We are going back, too, and we hope you will join us for a special convivial meeting of The John Randolph Club, November 10-14, 2010.
By “convivial†I mean that this year we have expanded the Randolph Club program to make the meeting more like one of our Convivia. Rather than schedule all the lectures for Saturday, we are spreading them across three half-day sessions. We will spend the other half of each day exploring a city naturally and architecturally endowed to preserve “charm and grace,†and not only charm and grace but other things dear to Chronicles readers: good manners, a sense of place, the human scale, and tradition.
When not visiting Charleston’s historic homes, admiring some of our republic’s oldest churches, or walking the streets that Francis Marion, John C. Calhoun, and William Gilmore Simms walked (and Tom Fleming as an undergraduate), we will be eating and drinking in a city that yet can claim an authentic and unique cuisine. Above all, we will be enjoying one another’s company. No matter how many brilliant and provocative speakers we assemble, no matter how lovely is the venue we select, it is the company of Chronicles readers that make our conferences a joy.
Not that we haven’t chosen a beautiful venue for the conference or lined up a great program. The John Randolph Club will be held this year at the Mills House, surely the best known of Charleston’s historic hotels, and certainly the best located. The delightful public spaces, including a beautiful courtyard (the average high in November in Charleston is 68), are perfect for the lively conversations that continue long after our panels have concluded. And our program is sure to inspire conversation. We will be considering and debating strategies for forming “communities of resistance.â€
In other words, we know that we are living in a dark age, one marked by the tyranny of lies, but we also know that we are not helpless to build full lives for our families, and within our communities. What recourse in economic, political, and cultural life do we have to create lives informed by the principles on which Western Civilization was built, even as American culture continues to decay? We’ll find the answer in political and literary history, and in philosophy, but also in the practical worlds of local economics, local politics, and even real-estate development.
This link shows the fine group of speakers who will make up our panels. You’ve read their insights in Chronicles, here is an opportunity to sit down with them and discuss ideas in depth. One of the things that make the Randolph Club meetings so enjoyable is that we do not all agree on every point. That is why we have a formal debate each year. This year the proposition is “Resolved: Conservatives should applaud the Supreme Court’s recent decision in McDonald vs. Chicago.†We think this debate will offer some spirited conversation on the question of just how sacrosanct are the rights of states and small communities.
Here are a few details to help you plan:
The Annual meeting of the John Randolph Club is open to all supporters of The Rockford Institute and to all Chronicles subscribers and their guests.
–The Randolph Club begins with a reception at 6:00 PM on Wednesday, November 10 and concludes with the banquet and debate on Saturday, November 13.
–Registration includes: a reception, dinner and address on Wednesday evening; lectures, a guided walk, and a group meal on Thursday; lectures, a guided walk, and a reception and address on Friday; and lectures, a guided walk and the “black-tie encouraged†banquet and debate on Saturday. Attendees are responsible for air travel and transfers to and from the hotel and for their reservations at the Mills House. See the enclosed flyer for details on the special Randolph Club room rate. Please don’t delay making your reservation. Our room block is limited.
–If your schedule does not permit your joining us for the full program, but you would like to join us for the Friday afternoon lectures, the Friday evening reception and address, the Saturday lectures and walk and the Saturday night banquet and debate, please call me for a weekend-only registration price.
–if you have any further questions concerning the meeting, or if you wish to make a gift to The Rockford Institute Scholarship Fund so that students can attend this and similar Rockford Institute events, please call me at (815) 964-5811. For a gift of $500.00 or more, I will send you a set of CDs of the lectures from the conference.
I look forward to seeing you in Charleston.
Register soon! Â The early-bird rate expires on September 15!
Click here for official details regarding this year’s convivial John Randolph Club.
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Category: Events, John Randolph Club
Thomas Fleming, whats wrong with Gone with the Wind?
I look forward to it. Especially the lunch at Jestine’s. The check is in the mail as of tomorrow.
I should point out that it is Chris Check who disparages Gone with the Wind. While not a great book, it is a pretty good read, and in my teens I was even too fond of it. The film is sentimental throughout and occasionally tacky, but it is about as good as a Hollywood epic can get.
I’m sure “disparage” is a little strong.
In any case, I should report that Tom and I were in Charleston last week making plans with the Mills House. This wonderful hotel may be the best we have ever used for a JRC in terms of charm, elegance, history, and location. We sat in the courtyard with Don Livingston drinking Makers and smoking cigars just be sure that the setting was right for the most popular JRC activities.
We also visited with Becky Calcutt and Jack Trotter (both of whom are delivering talks on the program) to plan three superb walks in the city, though we had to talk Tom out of a tour of the landmarks (some of them, anyway) of his undergraduate days at the College of Charleston. You cannot ask for a better trio to guide you through the city.
We picked a great place for a group lunch on Thursday (Virginia’s on King), and, we met with the energetic and entertaining Southern Avenger Jack Hunter who agreed to join the JRC program. He’ll be giving the Friday evening address following a lovely reception on a terrace overlooking Meeting Street.
Don’t miss this one!