When the going gets tough...

One variation on the old saw is "When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping."

Ever alert to the entire spectrum, I'm on the mail list for The Weekly Standard. Today I got an invitation to join Fred and Barbara Barnes on a Mediterranean cruise in August. Hard times being what they are, I was waiting for a million dollar get-away bonus, but maybe a cruise is just what I need to get my mind off my troubles.

Dear Friend of The Weekly Standard:

Bill Kristol joins me in inviting you to come with us on our Mediterranean cruise from August 7 to 17. Click here to find out all the details. You’ll enjoy informative seminars and get to quiz Bill and me and our other speakers on the hot political topics! There will be numerous social events, dining with fellow conservatives and our speakers, and privately hosted tours at each port.

It will be a restful vacation, and we very much hope you’ll be with us.

Find out more by clicking TWSCRUISE.COM.

Our publisher, Terry Eastland, and our deputy editor, Richard Starr, will be on the cruise. Also joining us will be special guests Elliott Abrams, who worked in the Bush White House on foreign policy and the Middle East in particular, and Ann Elisabeth Moutet, the Paris-based journalist and contributor to the BBC. Both are contributors to The Weekly Standard, and we believe you’ll find them to be outstanding dinner companions as well as insightful speakers.

Click TWSCRUISE.COM to see the many fine ports we’ll be stopping in, including Florence and Barcelona. We’re leaving out of Rome. And we’ve set up a special 3-day pre-cruise Roman holiday for those who want to start their vacation early. The cruise will include cocktail receptions, evening cigar and cognac smokers, dinners together with our speakers, group excursions, and seminar sessions.

Seminar topics will include:

*The Obama presidency: Already a failure, or can he turn it around?
* The United States: In deeper peril that we know, or will things get better?
* The war on terrorism: Taking stock of Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran
* The courts: Can the rule of law survive the Obama judiciary?
* 2010: A GOP comeback, or will Republicans lose more seats?
* The Weekly Standard: the best magazine ever, or what!

In addition to all the wonderful activities aboard the msNoordam and in port, this exclusive The Weekly Standard event includes:

* Moderated panel sessions featuring our esteemed guest speakers, along with plenty of passenger Q&A.
* Plenty of chances to meet, schmooze and enjoy personal interaction with our special guest speakers.
* Exclusive Parties and Dining with our special guest speakers. You will dine with your fellow Weekly Standard attendees, so that you have the chance to meet many of your fellow conservative cruisers.
* Numerous private cocktail parties and evening smokers.
* Port charges, taxes, fuel surcharges & gov't fees
* Accommodations & All Meals
* Most Shipboard activities
* A fully escorted cruise
* And much more...

My wife Barbara and I hope to see you in Rome and on board!

Cordially,

Fred Barnes

The price isn't advertised and after thinking about it I decided not to take advantage of this opportunity to rub shoulders with movers and shakers. Way out of my league. One of those if you have to ask the price you cannot afford it lifestyle options.

I recall a story from my days in Columbus, Georgia about two sisters from a prominent local family. Old money, you know. Even before Fort Benning became a local cash cow, Columbus had a history of lucrative textile and foundry enterprises predating the Civil War. Anyway, as the story goes, when the Great Depression came along at least one local family had enough resources to send a couple of children to ride out the hard times in European comfort. French, I was told, but this is all hearsay, so the reader should take it with a few grains of salt.