who is john galt?
4.22.2008
4.22.2008
I understand objectivism, and even appreciate it to the extent that it glorifies man and privileges and encourages the creation of art. What i find ironic, however, is that the kind of deterioration depicted in Atlas Shrugged (which is attributed to fascist/socialist/communist society in the narrative) is occurring here and now in one of the most capitalist, laissez-faire environments in the world. Our bridges are collapsing, our planes are in drastic need of replacement, and our freewheeling economy has grown so far out of proportion that people can't afford a tank of gas, much less their mortgages. Thoughts?
4 Comments:
My thought is that I'm glad someone understands what "objectivism" means. However, if you think things are particularly bad in the U.S., it's time for you to travel outside the country again. That said, when are you guys coming to visit? I can show you some real deterioration, Chavez style.
yea! can't wait to see some deterioration :) some possibilities for visiting:
xmas
spring break
next summer
i'd love to come sooner, but we're blowing all my vacation hours on going to albania this summer. have you guys decided what you're doing for xmax?
Perhaps the disconnect between Ayn Rand's ideology and the current reality of our "capitalist, laissez-faire environment", is that our free economy is not propelled by individuals who embody Rand's lofty ideals of objectivism -- men and women who believe that "productive achievement" is their "noblest activity" and that "reason" is their "only absolute".
Despite Rand's assertions that men and women like Hank Reardon and Dagny Taggart can (and do) truly exist, the current state of our nation (as you so deftly pointed out) certainly suggests otherwise.
The accuracy of a ship's course, no matter how beautifully the ship is crafted, is determined by the skills of its captain and crew. Mayhap our nation's "ship" is being navigated by a bunch of hedonistic drunks.
i think it's true that our nation is piloted by retards. i also think there's something systemically wrong when 4.5% of the world's population (the US) controls 40% of its wealth. this is where ayn and i would disagree.
i also think there's more to decision making than appealing to reason as one's only absolute. there's such a thing as tacit knowledge (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tacit_knowledge) which can't be accessed by reason. for instance, you may "know how to ride a bike," but what you really mean is you have developed muscle memory for keeping the thing from falling over. you can try to understand the physics behind riding a bike, but you can't simply employ them mechanically without ever having ridden one before.
my point is that there are things (such as morals) which aren't readily justified through reason alone.
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