LAS VEGAS — More than 2,000 lovers of liberty convened in Las Vegas, perhaps the nation's most libertarian city, for FreedomFest, a conference on all things libertarian Wednesday through Saturday. An annual event, this year's FreedomFest has become a sort of Mecca for libertarians and perhaps a launching pad for priorities of the liberty movement going into the election.

Many notable figures attended the event, including U.S. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., son of libertarian GOP Rep. Ron Paul of Texas, former presidential candidate Steve Forbes, Whole Foods CEO John Mackey, Fox News judicial correspondent Andrew Napolitano and many others. The Libertarian Party's presidential nominee Gary Johnson was also on hand for the festivities, joined by his vice presidential running mate, retired judge Jim Gray of Orange County.

This year's conference theme, "Finding Freedom in an Unfree World," was incorporated into many of the speeches. Napolitano's speech was entitled "A Government of Waste and Lawlessness," and Euro Pacific Capital CEO Peter Schiff warned the audience about how the U.S. dollar is "doomed."

Events like FreedomFest are a reminder that there is a movement of liberty activists starting to build a mainstream presence with the ability to move elections. That was among the points made by speaker Yaron Brook, president of the Irvine-based Ayn Rand Institute and author of the new book "Free Market Revolution: How Ayn Rand's Ideas Can End Big Government."

Brooks believes that the Tea Party movement the past few years is the foundation of a larger societal movement of individuals who understand that the challenges facing the country could, and should, be addressed with free-market reforms.

With Americans facing staggering national debt, government intrusion into their health care, unsustainable federal entitlements, wasteful government subsidies and an ever-growing regulatory state, the kind of vibrant free-market movement advocated at FreedomFest is needed and should be welcomed.

REPRINTED FROM THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER