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Does Peikoff have carte blanche power over O'ism?

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From Leonard Peikoff's essay "Fact and Value," available at www.aynrand.org:

"'Objectivism' is the name of Ayn Rand's achievement. Anyone else's interpretation or development of her ideas, my own work emphatically included, is precisely that: an interpretation or development, which may or may not be logically consistent with what she wrote. In regard to the consistency of any such derivative work, each man must reach his own verdict, by weighing all the relevant evidence."

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Did Ayn Rand really intend an unlimited sanction for anything Leonard Piekoff chooses to write in the name of Objectivism? 

No.

It means that he is the heir to all her copyrights and other intellectual property.

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No.

It means that he is the heir to all her copyrights and other intellectual property.

Hmmm...I think she may have intended more than that - that she trusted his judgement regarding what Objectivism was and his ability to speak on its behalf and that furthermore any additional ideas he may have regarding it likely would be consistent with it.

That however is not the same thing as "carte blanche", nor has anyone ever said anything of the kind, including Leonard Peikoff.

Fred Weiss

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As an interesting sidenote, observe how long someone may understudy in other fields, e.g., theater, manufacturing, or even scientific fields, to the point of becoming independently able. Then observe the length of time needed to understudy an entire philosophic system, especially one as radically new to our culture as Objectivism.

In fact, I think thirty years to learn from Ayn Rand was a relatively short amount of time. It certainly speaks for Leonard Peikoff's mental ability in addition to his character that he was able to undertake and, in my opinion, complete this monumental task. And thank god that he did!!

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