exaltron

Oooohhh. Heh, I thought that was a little random for him to be attacking me, and that does make slightly more sense, being that the OP's dude has the full on fonzie garb happening. Sorry IchorFigure, exaltron is very sensitive (and apparently somewhat paranoid) about his leather jacket

Focus: I gladly cop to the so-called sin of pride I put it all on number one and I let it ride because I know that my philosophy is bona fide And I never give an inch to the opposite side friends and foes feel my flows from nose to toes in the city of no dozin closin in on a cure for the moral twerpitude I don't wanna have to hurt you dude but if you step to this I will do you like Brutus not cuz you're ambitious cuz your aim is malicious meretricious bitches try to grab my riches but I ain't trying to waste my energy on new and different ways to slay my enemies never shrink from my responsibility never blink in the face of adversity from Marseilles to Bombay I waylay the PKs undermine the spineless with sublime rhymes and basslines And I always focus on the positive recognizing that the best revenge is to live haters obfuscate, instigate, complicate lust for the power to control your fate but we don't sweat them we gonna forget them we gonna let them set their own death lay them to rest cuz they've already confessed implicitly that they're guilty of the worst hypocrisy complicit in the worst atrocities precipitated by depraved philosophies advocating the rejection of the rational in favor of the blatantly fantastical now they try to put obstacles up in my path try to pull the plug on my bubble bath party poopers and storm troopers ain't even a threat naked lady mudflaps is all you're gonna get [chorus] now I'm talkin bout myself and I know why you're hatin some serious wealth is what I'm creatin psychological health is what I'm demonstratin take it somewhere else if your aim is instigatin I ain't cuban, puerto rican, haitian or jamaican my ethnicity officially is "straight money-makin" I take down statists with a well-placed brickbat expose their long noses and two-faced kickbacks gettin sharp cheddar like I'm from wisconsin takin out these thugs like I'm charles bronson no guns but I'm causing mass casualties pummeling the parasites perpetually intelligence cuz my logic is aristotalean eloquence cuz my rhymes are sesquipedalian I got the technique and the culinary know-how spicy -I'll burn your tongue like some kung pao Mr. Scott blowin spots cuz I gotz da stugots buckshot on these flocks talking poc trellat I rock the bomba clots, outfox the despots Scotch their rotten plots and mock their mental schlock from concretes to concepts and all the way back from the simplest perceptions to the most abstract it ain't worth smack if it ain't about facts so the faculty of reason is what they attack And I always focus on the positive recognizing that the best revenge is to live haters obfuscate, instigate, complicate lust for the power to control your fate

Yeah, definitely going to Tivo it when it comes out on the 30th. I know a few objectivists who would go apoplectic about the approach to art, but being somewhat of a phillistine myself when it comes to fine art, I think I might actually get something out of it

Yeah, I'm fonzie because I'm wearing a leather jacket. ha, ha, how terribly clever. If you even looked beyond my avatar you would see I have 164 posts and have been active here for several years, which last time I checked, ≠ troll. If you're going to recycle lame internet cliches like "lame troll is lame", you might want to inquire into their meaning.

Well nail me to a cross and call me jesus, if that don't beat all.. A christian objectivist, just when you think you've seen it all. Ahem, if you clicked here looking for something other than massive epistemological FAIL, might I suggest the vastly more viable graphics of The Society for the Resurrection of Capitalism, created by Upton Ethelbah. Reason, Reality, Dollar signs, a phoenix rising from the flames.. Note the conspicuous lack of any sacrificial symbolism..

Looks pretty fun from what I can tell. I really liked the content. I think the maniacally schizoid editing would eventually grate on anyone with an attention span longer than that of a gnat. I actually find the concept of an "art attack" kind of comical: "Johannes Vermeer is gonna reach through the screen and punch you in the skull with his subtle use of light and intense color!!!". Fun times.

That's odd, when I do a search for "mad men" (w/ or w/o quotes), nothing comes up. I have done okay with the search function before. Definitely a great show, amazing set design and period accuracy. The writer wrote an episode or two for the Sopranos and it shows to an extent: there is a definite nod towards the eventual and real consequences of being immoral and/or not lacking integrity. But there is also a nod towards nihilism that suggests that you're damned if you do, damned if you don't. As far as Ayn Rand, I sense that the writers are trying to skewer her as a hero to out-of-touch, arrogant conservative types who are looking for a cheap rationalization for their cutthroat behavior. I don't think the writers would say that advertising is nothing but smoke and mirrors- they clearly have some respect for the craft of advertising- but neither would they see them as "prime movers" or "producers". Basically a classic mixed bag of good and bad premises. But highly entertaining. And for those who are up to date on the episodes, it looks like Don Draper's chickens may be coming home to roost next week..

Unidentified Brown Stain FTW!!

Indeed, I would say the "country before self" theme is altruistic and expressly anti-objectivist. Risking your life when faced with the alternative of living under tyranny is certainly rational and proper, but the "country first" rhetoric is mostly useful to idiotic Republicans who prefer that those who they need to sacrifice themselves don't question their duty.

In addition to all the arguments made above, I would add that the FDA butchering a valuable service which in a free market would be: 1. voluntary in its enforcement 2. voluntary in its funding (most likely a private safety agency would be funded by doctors and/or consumers) 3. massively more efficient in providing unbiased (and uninfluenced by political considerations) information about drugs and their safety. There is much more to this, a lot of which is covered in OO member Stellavision on her blog ReasonPharm.

Welcome Ed! I wouldn't say there's a shortage of interesting characters on this board, but always nice to have a new one.. That's funny, I just bought my 12 yr old niece Anthem for her elementary school graduation. I also found a great book called The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain, which is written for children and depicts the authors childhood in Soviet-occupied Prague. I knew from the time I heard about her grandmother (on my stepbrother's side) successfully initiating a Christian indoctrination. I think the child is much too intelligent and critical to fall for such a fanciful tale, but then there's that new religion of sacrifice known as environmentalism, which is much more insidious. I think Anthem early on is a great idea, especially since a lot of kids get "1984" and other such novels to read in middle and high school, and will hopefully recognize the philosophical themes presented as similar if not as fully-realized. Hmm, I might give it to my own children at 13 (depending on their level of maturity), but not someone else's. Even reading the Fountainhead in my 20's, I didn't fully comprehend the nuances of the "rape by engraved invitation" scene. At any rate, the child should have a basic understanding of sexuality and healthy boundaries before reading it.

I'm up in the nosebleed section, Washington Heights. There are definitely pockets of Objectivists of varying ages in NYC. Social events tend towards parties, dinners, karaoke, etc by invitation, but there is also the Ayn Rand meetup which is open to all, the ones I've been too have been pretty cool. I would be down to hang out and/or organize something, hit me up via PM.

Not a youtube video but a hilarious send-up of the ongoing Jeremiah Wright & Obama scandal: http://www.hulu.com/watch/18852/late-night...ah-wright-43008 This is my favorite part: WRIGHT: I'm not finished: Goddamn North America. Goddamn South America, Miss America, Six Flags over Great America. Goddamn American Idol, America's Got Talent, America's Next Top Model. Goddamn America Ferrera, An American Tail: Fievel Goes West.... O'BRIEN: Wait a minute. What the hell are you talking about? WRIGHT: Everyone knows Fievel Goes West is the worst in the whole series. Goddamn Fievel Goes West. O'BRIEN: Alright, alright.

Clearly we yanks have you beat when it comes to social engineering. Huzzah!!

This is the best article I've seen so far from Dr. Brook or anyone at ARI (and I've read a few over the years). I'm heading right over to ARI to make a contribution in response to this article (tax deductible, of course..).

I thought of C&F today when I saw this little nugget of anti-environmentalist irony (probably more nihilistic than anything, but still very perceptive):

I'm so bummed I missed this! If you have a copy, can you save one for me? Congrats by the way..

I agree with that aesthetic assessment, I think that is part of the reason I have moved towards more melodic vocals that are implicitly objectivist (ie, you have to listen and understand what philosophical principles are being referenced), as opposed to the explicitly objectivist hip-hop that I was doing prior to that. It was fun to cram all kinds of objectivist messages into clever rhymes, but there is nothing like creating something that expresses a love of life without having to put that message in the lyrics. Here is a good example of that, a song called "Oxygen" that I recently finished. I've been getting some great feedback on Myspace for this song, but only a few people who really seem to get it. On an interesting side note, the more I feel that I am able to integrate the melody, phrasing, etc. with the message in the lyrics, the less I want to post lyrics. I can't stand to see or present the words I wrote to be sung appear in print.

I would say the emergency is pretty clearly over once the robber has withdrawn the threat and gotten what he is after. At that point it becomes a legal matter. I think the key here is in separating the need of individuals to defend themselves in the extremely exceptional event that their lives or well-being are threatened, as opposed to the situation you describe where the tendency would be towards a punitive use of force, in other words, taking the law in your own hands. I think it is very important that Objectivists make this clear, as in my experience, critics will use the rather strident language of Rand in, for example, Galt's speech, to paint Rand as advocating unlimited retaliatory force in response to any use of force (see this thread for an exposition). While you can take a quote like this: ..to illustrate that Rand was emphatically not an advocate of putting unlimited retaliatory force at the disposal of ordinary individuals, it is hard to find anything codified in Objectivist literature that draws a bright line where emergency retaliation stops and government "monopoly" of force kicks in. For me, there aren't many things that a mugger could take from me in terms of valuables that would make it rational for me to want to shoot at him once he is no longer threatening me. However what about the following example: You've spent the last ten years of your life writing a masterpiece of literature and a crazed intruder is holding the only copy of the manuscript over a fire (I know, why would there only be one copy? Just go with it.). Do you shoot to kill, shoot to maim (my understanding is that "shoot to maim" is almost never recommended for practical reasons of self-defense)? What if you've discovered a cure for cancer and some eco-terrorists are about to burn down your lab because you are conducting animal trials?

Great lecture, I've listened to this twice and am still picking up new points. I think the characterization of leftists as burying their head in the sand when it comes to economics is spot on. Not necessarily a brand new idea, but I don't believe I've heard it presented so eloquently before. The original was posted on Mises Media page of Ustream, which I think it is safe to assume they had permission to do, since they presented the original lecture. They also enabled sharing and provided the code needed for others to post this video on any website. So clearly there is no copyright infringement happening here. Copyright infringement is clearly a problem in the digital age and needs to be addressed. However I don't think the answer lies in assuming that anyone who shares content without a signed letter of permission is automatically a looter.

Hilarious! I've been a fan of Rob Riggle and the Daily Show for a while now, never knew that Riggle was a former Marine, but it make sense (I'm thinking of the Iraq segments he did where he seemed to have an excellent rapport with the soldiers). John Stewart is great at what he does, though he is just as likely to evince disgust in me with his cynicism as to make me laugh. Like many leftists, his stance seems to imply that sarcasm and bitterness are somehow a substitute for coherent ideas and principles. Keep laughing leftists, meanwhile Objectivism is seeping into your universities, thousands of high school students are being exposed to Ayn Rand. I love it when he gets so enraged he has to step out and break the board. Hippies!!!!

I would have to agree with this, having been exposed to many professionally trained (esp Berklee) musicians and many self-taught musicians, the only overall distinction I can make is that the ones with degrees are more well-connected. This may be a function of having the training and the degree, ie, if someone is thinking of hiring two equally great sounding musicians, but one has a degree (meaning they are pretty much guaranteed to have a core set of skills without testing them), the one with the degree is more likely to get hired. I'm willing to bet the same goes for film work, perhaps even more so, since there is more money to be lost in hiring someone who might not have the proper skills. There is also nepotism to consider, which tends to be a factor in all industries, but in the entertainment industry where people tend to be more insecure and narcissistic, nepotism plays a big role in what opportunities are available. Of course all of this can be overcome with persistence and discipline. Ayn Rand is a perfect example of someone who never had any connections and was rejected at every turn in the beginning of her career, only to come back and.. well, you know how it ends.. If you're interested in film composing, I would drop a line to Michael Shapiro. He is a successful film composer in LA specializing in live orchestra scoring. He's spoken at TOC at least once. I believe he came late to the game as well, after undergrad if I remember correctly.

The use of Fred Thompson talking about "self-sacrifice" and "the common good" before being interrupted by Galt's "Mr. Thompson will not be speaking to you tonight" is inspired!! Almost made me spit my coffee out all over my keyboard. !Viva el poder de los ideas!

I have to take issue with that particular statement. Rights in Objectivist philosophy are emphatically NOT secondary to a government that secures them. They exist regardless, as a function of man's nature, and are secured by a proper government. I do agree that the hypothetical holdout land owner is irrational if he doesn't recognize his interest in upholding and preserving the system that secures his rights.