Thom, this reminds me of one reason I quit the Federalist Society. While they are more conservative and even more free market than most lawyers, the ones I've met have been woefully non-intellectual, ignorant, and completely unlibertarian. I remember a few years ago I was at a luncheon w/ some fellow members of the Houston chapter. I was sitting next to one guy who is an extremely intelligent lawyer, at a big firm, very well educated from some posh New England law school, etc. Trying to draw some interesting conversation out of him--he was kind of quiet and reserved, and I was not sure of how conservative, or libertarian, or whatever he was--I finally asked him something like, "Well, which political philosophers would you say you admire?" The answer stunned me, almost left me speechless: "Oh, I'd say Newt Gingrich."
'Nuff said.
