As a way to empty out my notebook after SFL events, these What I Learned columns have become a favorite tradition of mine. And since this is LEARN Liberty, after all … let’s go.

I learned what a Venezuelan 100-Bolivar bill looks and feels like. It was given out as a tangible reminder of the damage inflicted by central banks and governments because, as I also learned, we could afford to hand them out like candy: 100 Venezuelan Bolivares are worth about $1.60.

I learned what the World’s Smallest Political Quiz is, and where I land on the triangular chart that lists left, right, statist, centrist, and libertarian. (Take one guess.)

I learned that last holiday season, David Friedman gave copies of the book Thinking, Fast and Slow to the people in his life for whom he couldn’t come up with a better idea. And at a debate on sports betting, I learned something I wished I had asked Professor Friedman about: that there might be problems with suddenly making a black-market activity legal. (Consider sports betting: Just because it’s now legal in most U.S. states doesn’t mean all those shady, offshore agencies magically disappear or lose their advantages over law-abiding agencies. The offshore ones still can evade taxes, screw over employees, and generally act outside the law, whereas your standard, law-abiding betting platforms either can’t or won’t.)

Meanwhile, speaking of sports, some of my colleagues at SFL learned how many goals Alex Ovechkin has scored and that they all count the same, even if they come with one-tenth of a second left.

I learned that the aggregated opinions of health policy experts predict a 16 percent chance of a global pandemic within the next five years, but only a 5 percent chance that American insurance companies will be able to deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions, the way they once could.

I learned that Robby Soave braved a snowstorm to get to his first LibertyCon, and what Daniel Di Martino thinks is the best critique of his belief in merit-based immigration: that the government cannot effectively or efficiently decide who “merits” entrance to the country.

I learned what a basis point is, but it’s a complicated banking thing that’s not worth explaining here.

I learned that the Ku Klux Klan always has a few members stand by the burning cross because it can be dangerous when it finally falls over. I learned that from Daryl Davis, whose incredible history of talking to bigots and bringing them out of their hateful movements I also learned.

It took me a while and a lot of asking for random people’s input, but I finally learned what Barry Goldwater looks like. Or, at least, what a cartoonist’s rendering of him for a book cover looks like.

And speaking of books, I learned from John Mackey’s book how he became a vegan, and all about his battles with animal rights and union activists. And then I learned (well, was reminded) from his speech that actually, there IS something more important than freedom: love.

I learned how Antony Davies prepares for presentations (hard, and with concerted effort, as you can tell from his Learn Liberty videos) and the topic of the wild exposé Jack Nicastro, our Student of the Year, is working on for Reason magazine (not sure if I’m allowed to tell you, but you can learn more about him below).

I learned who George Mason was and why he’s a classical liberal icon. Just before that, I learned that it’s been 50 years since F.A. Hayek won the Nobel Prize. And just before THAT, I learned what he meant by the term road to serfdom: that we are pretty far down that road because ordinary people can become serfs nowadays, through little or no fault of their own.

Let’s see, what else? I learned how tall Dolph Ziggler is in real life and all about his house show at the Calgary Corral vs. Tyler Breeze. I learned that Elon Musk said Ron Paul should audit the Fed. And I learned that Florian Windberger plays bass and that you should always order your steak to be cooked as a Pittsburgh char.

I learned how Dylan and Rachael Dean met, the inspiration behind an all-time great Van Morrison song, how Conor Fogarty spells his name (one n), and that he credits the SFL Local Coordinator Program with expanding his worldview and getting him where he is today (the Cato Institute, as the manager of Educational Programs). 

And I learned that weather moves quickly into and out of D.C. but traffic does not, that the Apple store across from the hotel was formerly a library, that Katherine Mangu-Ward goes by KMW (coulda guessed), that a bunch of liberty-leaning people are moving to New Hampshire but that you don’t have to establish a legal residence there to help the Free State Project, and that everyone either just had or just saw a pencil but doesn’t currently have one. And, finally, I learned, or reaffirmed, I suppose, that all the data and economics and philosophy and politics are cool to learn, but that it’s the people and their quirks and interests and passions and stories that are even cooler.

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This piece solely expresses the opinion of the author and not necessarily the organization as a whole. Students For Liberty is committed to facilitating a broad dialogue for liberty, representing a variety of opinions.