The Anthem

I can see how that would happen. I've never actually played a full game of Risk, it always ends with two superpowers left and everyone else who's lost goes off to play Halo. Then the last two call a truce and join in.

I am definetely a gamer. I play as often as I can. Playing the character in a video game setting is just so immersive, I feel like I am that person. When I watch a movie or read a book I'm constantly reminded that I'm not in control and that I am just reading/watching. Still, as of yet, video games have not been able to consistently bring up the stories of a calibre as good as movies and books. There are a few good stories though, hopefully thats a sign better stories are still to come.

I don't like Obama either but come on, its not going to be that bad.

I've been watching a lot of Penn and Teller: Bullshit! lately. For those who don't know, Penn and Teller are two magicians, Penn does all of the speaking and Teller is silent. Their magic is good but their show, Bullshit! is dedicated to exposing and debunking certain ideas and pseudosciences, e.g. detoxing, alien abductions, gun laws, and recycling. Each show is very funny and very truthful. It becomes quite clear by watching these that they are both very libertarian. However, not every issue is approached from a economic standpoint, sometimes they will attack ideas with morality (though not often enough). This made me think that they may possibly be Objectevists. Can anyone confirm this? Edit: I was watching a Penn Says, a vlog Penn puts out, and he mentioned in passing that he is an "Ayn Rand guy."

I love this game. I just got to level 20 (the level cap) and I still have a great deal of the Wasteland to explore and an unfinished main quest. Sadly, my 360 just got Red Ring so it will be a while before I can finish it. My favorite part is the attention to detail in this world. If you look hard enough, every single "dungeon" has a story behind it. Every building has something to say. Its amazing.

Thats a fantastic story! I really enjoyed it. I suggest you format it better though, right now its just a block of text, its hard to read.

The socialists have been shouting for quite a while now that the health care system needs reform. I know that socialized medicine is not the answer. However, I have no rebuttal when it comes to their cries for reform. The problem is I don't know squat about health care. What is wrong with the current system? What caused it?

I'd really like to see it but I don't have my license and my catholic and protestant parents probably don't want to take me.

Thats an interesting point. I really enjoyed Bioshock but I still don't know what to think of it. It seems to cast Objectivism in a good light many times, some of the quotes by Andrew Ryan are fantastic. But in the end, Rapture was an Objectivist utopia gone wrong but the game never really raised a point as to what was wrong with Objectivism that led it to this.

"In the late 1940’s, another newly coined term was shot into our cultural arteries: “McCarthyism.” Again, it was a derogatory term, suggesting some insidious evil, and without any clear definition. Its alleged meaning was: “Unjust accusations, persecutions, and character assassinations of innocent victims.” Its real meaning was: “Anti-communism.” Senator McCarthy was never proved guilty of those allegations, but the effect of that term was to intimidate and silence public discussions. Any uncompromising denunciation of communism or communists was—and still is—smeared as “McCarthyism.” As a consequence, opposition to and exposés of communist penetration have all but vanished from our intellectual scene. (I must mention that I am not an admirer of Senator McCarthy, but not for the reasons implied in that smear.)" “‘Extremism,’ or The Art of Smearing,” Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal, 176.

Haven't looked into her too much but I've always liked Unwritten. Such a good song for a writer!

Hello and welcome! Always good to have another writer around.

Tremontinator23 What kind of games are you into?

Thanks for all the book suggestions. I'm checking them out now.

Well, that ended fast. Everyone in the thread "found out" I was 16 (it was publicly displayed in my profile) and is now assuming I have no "real world experience". Then came a full page of me being called an immature child. No one was able to refute any of my claims, and no one will. Needless to say I've severed all ties with that forum. Theres no point in going there anymore.

This arguement started off on the death penalty and ended up in taxes. I've told him about the immorality of taxes but he seems to think they're a neccessary evil. He said roads and schools could not run without taxes. I rebutted with privatisation. Now he is saying the prices of all of these privatised things would cause a new depression. Here is his exact response: "Let me break it to you like this. The average private school in Canada is nearly $12,000 per year. The average family has 2 children so we're looking $24,000/yr. Teachers aren't going to want to be paid less, and if soo much money is freed up, this should be no issue. But guess what. To be eligible to have this money after not paying taxes, you would have to be making nearly 100,000 a year. A task that app. 80% of the population does not do. So now you want to add in healthcare, increased travel costs, etc etc etc? Come on. It's just not possible without sending the economy into a serious turmoil and creating a new depression. If you can justify why society should willing create an economic crisis based on a concept that cannot be backed up or justified without using hypothetical situation, and "not knowing how society would create the change" you should realize there is a red flag going up. This is not a good idea. Interesting concept, but not logical, practical, or worth doing. Better to continue with the tax system we have, improve and refine it." Its really frustrating because I have not yet bought any of Ayn Rand's non fiction (lack of funds). Capitalism is easily my weakest point, I just don't know very much about how a pure laissez faire system would work yet. I was hoping you guys would help me respond to this.

Okay, so I tried the whole To Do List. It didn't help me with my memory but it did help me keep on task so I will continue with it. I'll try out that book you recomended. I looked up a book on Amazon with a very high review score, Your Memory : How It Works and How to Improve It by Kenneth L. Higbee. It sounds good, has anyone else had success with it?

I may not agree with Bill Maher's political views but the movie should be worth a few laughs.

This is quite a bump (4 years!) but it had to be done. I am planning on writing some sort of objectivst themed superhero story. Because of that, I was looking around the forums for stuff about superheroes and how members felt about them. Then, I stumbled on to this thread. After 6 pages all I can say is WOW, this entire idea is absolutely fantastic. However, the link for http://www.rationalman.net does not work. I would really like to know what became of this.

Wow, and I thought my school was bad. Good luck trying to stomach this crap. Is there any way you could get transfered to a different school?

I was always fairly good at sports. I hated being on a team though cause no matter how well I did we could always lose because of that one player.

I promise that no one will read your work except for myself. Don't worry, I'm a writer so I know exactly how it feels to think someone may try and steal my stuff.

I would also like to read it. It sounds interesting.

Thanks, that makes a lot of sense. I knew this question would be answered quickly!

I'm sure my answer is in here somewhere but when I searched, I didn't find it, so bear with me. I recognize that the privatization of all schools will lead to far better education. I understand the benefits but am unsure as to whether or not they outweigh the consequences. Would the poor get stuck with a terrible education? Would only the rich be able to afford quality education?