Concerning last night’s National Review Institute dinner in New York, a few observations:

1) I sat at a table with, among other luminaries, the DeVos family of Michigan. They are the family behind Amway. We (NRI) were honoring them. They have not only sold products that people need at affordable prices; they have provided employment and wealth for many, many people.

The other day, campaigning in Massachusetts, Hillary Clinton said, “Don’t let anybody tell you that, you know, it’s corporations and businesses that create jobs. You know that old theory: trickle-down economics.”

There are a hundred things you could say about this. I have already said some of them. But here is something else: The Democrats like to say they’re the party of science, knowledge, reason, evidence, logic. But they say things at complete odds with reality — as in Hillary Clinton’s campaign declaration.

2) For years now, I have meant to include something in my Impromptus column. But I never got around to it. Across from the golf range in Manhattan — yes, there is only one, to my knowledge — there is a modern building that is a thing of beauty. It is novel, interesting, and beautiful, all three.

I wanted to say, “I’m always blasting modern architecture — and modern everything — so it gives me special pleasure to praise a certain building.”

Well, I’ll be damned: It was where the dinner last night was held. It turns out to be the “IAC Building,” designed by Frank Gehry. I should have known it was Gehry — Bilbao, Disney Hall, Bard College, and all that.

3) Charles Krauthammer — our honoree, along with the DeVoses — told a joke that I have always known as a Jewish joke. In the version familiar to me, it goes (something) like this:

A priest, a minister, and a rabbi are playing golf. There’s a single player ahead, accompanied by a caddie. The single player is slow, which is odd. The threesome sends a ranger up ahead to see what the problem is. The ranger comes back and says, “The golfer is actually blind. He is playing with the guidance of his caddie, and enjoying himself. It’s just that he’s a little slow, as we can all understand.”

The priest says something about suffering and forbearing. The minister says something else. (Sorry, I’m not telling the joke well, but I’m getting to the punchline.) The rabbi, hard-headed, says, “Why can’t they play at night?”

In Dr. K.’s telling, it was a Franciscan, a Benedictine, and a Jesuit — and the Jesuit was the hard-headed fellow. Dr. K. was comparing that fellow to WFB.

P.S. Longtime readers will recognize the opening formulation of this post — “Concerning Topic X, a few observations” — as a WFB trademark.

P.P.S. On the subject of jokes and religion: Rob Long (emceeing this dinner) said, “You know how to make an Episcopalian look at his shoes? Mention money or Jesus.”

That reminded me of something a reader once e-mailed me. I had written something about social justice, and the fraudulence of that phrase. The reader said, “In our community, we say there are two kinds of rabbis: Those who talk about social justice, and those who can read Hebrew.”