On Saturday night, I attended the recording of the 2,000th episode of the Tom Woods Show in Orlando, Florida. It was 4 hours of fun, with a few serious moments mixed in. And that was just for the show itself.
I attended the 1,000th episode four years ago, which was a great time as well. The major difference was the size of the crowd. This time around, there were about 2,500 people who attended the show.
While I drove to Orlando, there were people from all over who flew in. I heard that there were people from all 50 states. It takes some dedication to get on a plane (especially these days) to watch a live episode of a podcast.
I have been dealing personally with vaccine mandates, and I have been a bit down lately. To see 2,500 enthusiastic supporters of liberty in one room was uplifting.
It’s not just the existence of 2,500 people in a room with nobody wearing a mask (except for Michael Malice that one time) that made it great, although that is wonderful. But the fact that just about all of these people are dedicated opponents against the COVID tyranny is heartwarming.
I could hear what got the biggest laughs and what got the biggest cheers. The mention of anti-Faucism and taking a stand against vaccine mandates got some of the biggest cheers.
Since the episode hasn’t been released yet, I can’t give away too much. But even the drunk idiot who interrupted the show at midnight was against masks. He just didn’t realize he had walked into a giant room filled with people who probably share his opinion on the matter.
I actually ran into several people that I knew. It is interesting how you can see some of the same familiar faces when you travel in the same circles, although I don’t go to many libertarian events these days.
There was a lot of great conversation before and after the show. It is nice being around like-minded people.
I was introduced to Doc Dixon, who is a magician. He is also a comedian. He had a big part in the show. I can vouch that he is just as funny in person as he is on stage.
I did not talk to Tom Woods, but I had already spoken with him a handful of times in the past. It was better for people who had never met him in person to be given the chance to meet him.
Next time there is a libertarian Family Feud (the game show), I suggest that Tom be the host of the show instead of being one of the participants. He seemed to be the only one on stage who actually knew how the show works.
I have no idea if I’ll watch or listen to the episode when it gets released. Maybe some of it will be edited down so that it isn’t 4 hours long. After the 1,000th episode, I think I watched back parts of it, but I can’t remember if I listened to the whole thing again.
Dave Smith, unfortunately, couldn’t be at the 2,000th episode. He was probably my favorite from the 1,000th episode. I got to meet him there, and I became a regular listener of his podcast a short time later.
Still, for the 2,000th episode, there was no shortage of comedy. There were quite a few libertarians who showed a comedic side that I hadn’t really seen before.
At the end of the night, a bunch of us got on an elevator to go up to our rooms. Michael Malice, whom I had never met, got on. People were calling out floors to me, as I was closest to the elevator buttons. But they weren’t working. Nothing was lighting up. There were two lobby buttons, so I tried hitting the other lobby button because I thought maybe the elevator was going down instead of up. When I hit the lobby button, Michael Malice said we’re already at the lobby. He said something to the effect of, “Don’t you know how an elevator works?”
So in less than a minute, I had gotten insulted by Michael Malice. Some people seek out this honor, but it came easily to me.
If you listen to the 2,000th episode without having attended, I don’t know how funny it will be as compared to the live show. I still think it will be worth your time if you have a sense of humor.
When Tom celebrates his 3,000th show in another four years, I hope our world is in a better place.