I say quit trying to convince them to get into Lisp. Lisp does not maintain rockstar status like Python or Ruby nor does it have the big daddy status like Java

I say quit trying to convince them to get into Lisp. Lisp does not maintain rockstar status like Python or Ruby nor does it have the big daddy status like Java or C++, although it is older and (in some cases) better than all of them combined. You yourself stated that you got into Lisp as you knew that some of the best literature uses it as a medium and you were hungry for knowledge. This may not be so for your buddies.