Title was theirs, not mine. As with my other letters, I don't do these to be some great work of writing. I just like to get a strong statement of some basics out there to oppose the crap.
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Some letters contain philosophical disasters of such epic proportions that my respect for the greatness of man inspires me to spend some of my time challenging them. Such a letter appeared in the Lincoln Journal Star recently. That letter was “Stop U-Stop,” in which John Baldus opposed the building of a U-Stop/McDonald’s at 21st and K streets.
According to Baldus, it is immoral to start a business. It is immoral to invest time and money providing products and services people want at a price they are willing to pay. It is immoral to value one’s time and effort, and thus to want to be paid for the value one provides to others.
To Baldus and those agreeing with him, I ask: What, then, is moral? One possibility, Baldus implies, is the Antelope Valley Redevelopment Plan. Part of that plan is the theft of desired property when negotiations fail. If the property owners do not wish to sell their lands, the government simply readies its guns and takes them.
By what standard does this morality condemn trade while condoning theft? Were it not for the wealth that people behind businesses like U-Stop create, there would be nothing to steal. Production is the means by which we thrive. The people with the courage and ingenuity to produce should be praised, not condemned.
In keeping with the theme of the thread, you need to slow your roll. Do you have some specific post from this forum to which you are addressing your comments? If so, then you need to quote that so we know to what specifically you object. Whose friggin ears need to be opened? Who has disregarded what? Who hasn't given something a chance? Who has misconceptions? In your opening post, you refer to "most Objectivists I have spoken with." Are they members of this forum? Which ones, and what specifically did they say?
You have asserted that certain people are irrational and offered no evidence beyond generalized assumptions. For example, (paraphrasing) "You have never heard something but have judged it" is an assertion of irrationality. In addition to the irony of these comments (chastising people for making generalized assumptions, the evidence for which you offer consisting of generalized assumptions), they are both dumb and prohibited by the forum rules. (See (2)(b ) under prohibited behavior.) Take it easy.
I'm partial to that era, too, particularly Dre and Snoop Dogg. Of the newer acts, I like Eminem and DMX.
Groovenstein got a reaction from Craig24 in "Commerce V. Theft"
Groovenstein got a reaction from mdegges in Hip Hop