On March 7, the Acton Institute hosted an evening in Chicago featuring author and political satirist P.J. O’Rourke. A crowd of supporters and friends as well as Acton staff enjoyed an evening of dining and fellowship at The Peninsula Chicago.
With more than one million words of trenchant journalism under his byline and more citations in The Penguin Dictionary of Humorous Quotations than any living writer, O’Rourke has established himself as America’s premier political satirist. Both TIME and the Wall Street Journal have labeled O’Rourke “the funniest writer in America.” Covering current events, O’Rourke combines the skill and discipline of an investigative reporter with a comedian’s sense of the absurd and the stupid. O’Rourke’s bestselling books include his newest release, None of My Business, which was available at the dinner for purchase and signing by O’Rourke.
Known as a hard-bitten, cigar-smoking conservative, O’Rourke bashes all political persuasions. “Giving money and power to government,” says O’Rourke, “is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.”
The evening began with an introduction from Rev. Robert Sirico, who reminded the attendees that the United States is at a crucial point in history as significant numbers of people are increasingly buying into collectivist ideology. “The work of modern forms of central planning need to be confronted with logic, facts and winsomeness,” said Sirico. “And O’Rourke brings an insight to these issues that is elevating and humorous.”
O’Rourke gave a humorous talk touching on economics, culture and history. He also took the time to address audience questions after his talk, covering everything from progressivism in colleges to the future of conservatism.
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