DELEGATION OF LEADING INTERNATIONAL ECONOMISTS TO ATTEND JERUSALEM
CONFERENCE-REGISTRATION OPEN FOR JOURNALISTS

FREE MARKET ECONOMY IS WHAT'S RIGHT ABOUT ISRAEL & ITS FUTURE

Internationally Renowned Economists to Gather at Jerusalem Institute for
Market Studies Conference to Examine Israel's Free Market Economy Amid
Political, Religious Tensions

(JERUSALEM – May 17, 2012) A delegation of leading economic thinkers and
influencers from the United States, Europe and Israel will gather in
Jerusalem next week for a high-level conference to be held on the occasion
of the 100th birthday of the renowned American economist Milton Friedman.
The conference, organized by the Jerusalem Institute for Market Studies
(JIMS) entitled “Religion and Economic Liberty: A Match Made in Heaven?”,
will be held at the David Citadel Hotel from May 20th through the 24th.

The event will open with a gala dinner to be addressed by Israeli Deputy
Minister for the Development of the Negev and the Galilee Ayoob Karra.

The conference program can be found at
http://jims-conference.org/Program/Pages/Agenda.aspx

According to JIMS Director Corinne Sauer, the four-day gathering will
introduce some of the world’s most influential economic minds to Israel and
help address the pressing questions facing the nation. "Naturally, much
world attention regarding Israel focuses on political turmoil in the
Mideast, the shaky peace process and so on, but not so much on what works
best in this country, its economy with robust hi-tech horizons, low
unemployment and growing GNP," she says. “This conference will allow
leading economists to address these issues from here in Jerusalem and help
design solutions for the betterment of Israel’s future.”
Among the personalities who will be appearing are:

• Randy Barnett- A Professor of Law at Georgetown University, Barnett
is the key individual behind the effort to dismiss President Obama’s
healthplan as unconstitutional. As was described in a recent profile in The
New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/27/us/randy-barnetts-pet-cause-end-of-health-law-hits-supreme-court.html
, Professor Barnett’s efforts are responsible for bringing the case to the
United States Supreme Court where it is currently being deliberated.

• Sam Pelzman- Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago,
he is responsible for developing The Peltzman Effect which argues that when
safety regulations are increased, people are more likely to embrace risky
behavior. A commonly used example of this effect is how when people wear
seatbelts they are more likely to drive recklessly. This theory can be
adapted to many different fields of thought including national security.

• Russ Roberts- A professor of economics at George Mason University,
Roberts has been a harsh critic of the Obama Administration’s handling of
the economic crisis and is the producer of a highly-popular You Tube channel
http://www.youtube.com/user/EconStories which uses popular media formats to
explain complex economic issues to the general public.

• Charles Murray- Professor Murray is a fellow at the American
Enterprise Institute and the author of The Bell Curve. This controversial
text argues that certain groups are more likely to be intelligent and have a
greater impact upon society. In particular, Murray overtly argues that Jews
have a greater representation in elite sectors of society because they have
been proven to be genetically more intelligent than other ethnic groups.
Professor Murray will be prepared to discuss how this has impacted upon
Israel’s modern development.

• Barry Chiswick- A Distinguished Professor at the University of
Illinois, Chiswick has written extensively on the impacts of immigrants and
religious groups on the economy. Professor Chiswick would be uniquely
positioned to provide an expert analysis on the role of haredim in Israeli
society and the potential impact of reforms to encourage increased haredi
cooperation in the workforce.

• Ángel Martín Oro is a Spanish PhD student in economics, research
fellow of the Instituto Juan de Mariana and contributor to LibreMercado.com.
He has written extensively on proactive solutions to the current Spanish
economic crisis and is prepared to discuss the ongoing challenges
confronting his nation.

• David Friedman- The son of Milton Friedman, Professor Friedman
lectures at Princeton University and has written extensively on the
convergence of law and economics. Milton Friedman is largely credited with
abolishing the draft in the United States and his son would be able to speak
to the potential of doing away with the draft in Israel and how that would
impact on the national economy.

Additional speakers who will be in attendance include Jonathan Medved,
Daphne Netanyahu and Zev Golan. The full conference program listing all
presenters can be viewed at www.jims-conference.org
http://www.jims-conference.org

The conference is being jointly sponsored by, The Acton Institute, The Atlas
Foundation, The Becket Fund and Maraah Magazine.
Journalists covering the conference will be afforded full admission to the
entire program. Advanced media registration is required.
To register and for more information:
Jeremy Wimpfheimer
Lone Star Communications – Jerusalem
+972-54-659-7795
jeremy@lonestar.co.il