The last time we visited Oberlin College, the campus was evacuated after sightings of a woman in a blanket.

The school seems to have recovered enough to have a former Republican presidential contender give a talk on the constitution, limited government intervention and support of free market capitalism.

Emily Kennedy of The Chronicle-Telegram has a report on the speech:

A spirited full house greeted former U.S. Rep. Ron Paul in Oberlin College’s Finney Chapel on Sunday evening as a part of the college’s Convocation Series.

Paul, known for his strict interpretation of the constitution, limited government intervention and support of free market capitalism, came through Oberlin on a speaking tour to give a lecture, “Liberty Defined,” from Paul’s 2011 book of the same name.

“We now have accepted this notion that the government can solve all … problems,” Paul said on Sunday. “You just have to remember that when the government gets involved in trying to improve your personal and social life — when they want to get involved in how you spend your money, invest your money, take care of yourself economically — they can only do that at the expense of personal liberty.”

The retired congressman enthusiastically extolled the virtues of small government, limited regulation, personal property rights and the resurgence of an ethos of government that promoted “individual liberty protected equally” for all people.

…“I’ve been asked by (Oberlin College President Marvin Krislov): ‘What’re you doing these days?’— I lobby for liberty by going to the campuses of Americans who are interested in liberty,” Paul said.

The lecture was sponsored by the Oberlin College Republicans and Libertarians and funded primarily by the Ronald Reagan Political Lectureship Series, a yearly series sponsored by Oberlin College alumnus Steven Shapiro featuring speakers from the center-right of the political spectrum.

Nick Miller, college senior and president of the Oberlin College Republicans and Libertarians, contacted Paul in January after his congressional term ended, with the hope of bringing him to campus before Miller graduate in May.

“It’s been kind of dream of mine for a long time … (to) have the leader of the Libertarian movement come to Oberlin,” Miller said of the event. “Paul’s never really a nonstarter for anybody.”

Miller, who organized the lecture, said that he believed the Oberlin College community’s focus on activism and personal freedoms had unrecognized overlaps in Paul’s speech.