Quick Hits: Ivan Pongracic

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Quick Hits: Ivan Pongracic
Pongracic and his wife Christina travel to Durdle Door, England. Courtesy | Ivan Pongracic

What is one music genre you think is underrated? 

I’ve spent the past 25 years playing instrumental surf music, which was born in the early ‘60s in Southern California. Most acts from that scene were primarily instrumental, without much singing, with the electric guitar playing the melodies. My two bands, the Madeira and the Space Cossacks, have been like that. I have been closely connected to this scene, which went international decades ago, since ’94. I got to tour all over the US and even Europe playing this music. 

What is one word some people use to describe you? 

Passionate. 

When you were young, what did you want to be when you grew up? 

I had delusions of becoming a fighter pilot, like a lot of kids. Fighter jets are beautiful. As I grew up, I started realizing, yeah, that is really dangerous.  

What is one memory from your childhood that stands out to you? 

When I was growing up in Croatia, my family spent a lot of time on the Adriatic Sea. I have a lot of fond memories of being there, the beautiful beaches and the amazing history going back to the Roman times. 

Do you have any hidden talents or hobbies? 

I love playing tennis, and actually was pretty good at it when I was a kid. Some of the top tennis players in the world come from former Yugoslavia and I used to practice alongside one or two that became well-known. What could have been! 

What is one thing you believed as a college student that you still believe today? 

That government is best that governs least. 

What is one memorable gift you’ve received? 

My first electric guitar, for my fourteenth birthday.  

What is one thing most people don’t know about you? 

I’m completely obsessed with the Mediterranean Sea, its history, culture, food. If I could, I would entirely subsist on the Mediterranean diet for the rest of my life.  

What’s the most recent book you read? 

‘Socialism Sucks’ by Benjamin Powell and Robert Lawson. 

If you could spend one day in the life of any fictional or historical figure, who would you choose? 

I would love to be Friedrich Hayek as socialism was collapsing in Europe in the late ’80s and early ’90s. Must have felt deeply vindicating. On a lighter side, it would be pretty amazing to know what it’s like to be Paul McCartney. 

Who is someone you’ve always looked up to outside of immediate family? 

Richard Ebeling. Richard was a Hillsdale College economics professor as well as department chairman. He actually hired me here in 2000. I think he’s one of the smartest and wisest people I ever met, and not only because he hired me! His knowledge of economics and history is immense. He later became president of the Foundation for Economic Education and we traveled the world together to give lectures, to the Republic of Georgia and Armenia, both formerly part of the Soviet Union, as well as the Czech Republic, and Poland.  

What’s one piece of advice you try to live by? 

Never lie to yourself. I see a lot of that and that was actually advice that my dad gave me when I was a young teen. 

What’s one way you hope to impact your students? 

My hope is that as they learn more about economics, they will understand that liberty is the only way to have a well-functioning society. Not the best waythe only way to achieve a prosperous and good society.