Laughing to insight...

Continuing the thought from yesterday, here's a brilliant juxtaposition: Comedy and Economics! The Kilkenomics Festival, which takes place this weekend in Kilkenny, Ireland, pits outspoken comedians against top economists to get to the bottom of the world's money woes. Leave it to those verbally gifted Irish to come up with something so fantastical and relevant. I'm genuinely sorry to miss this. And I'll leave it to festival founder David McWilliams to explain why:

"If the average guy comes in and he sees a comedian asking a big question of the serious economists in a funny way, well, then ultimately people in the audience will say, yeah, I'm going to ask that question too. I now have permission to do so... If you think that knowledge is power, well, then giving people the knowledge, packaging the knowledge in such a way that the knowledge becomes accessible, that empowers the people. And a powerful people, an educated people is the type of people that don't make the same mistakes twice."

Oh, and I should mention that the festival has its own currency, the marble, which is legal tender at all festival venues.

David you have my full support on this project, and I hope to make it there to the festival next year.