J. Hall

I can't believe no one's mentioned the "6th Day". Hero with bad philosophy? Check. Religionism? Check. Luddism? Check. Then there's the "End of Days" - arguably worse. I'd also steer well clear of "What the Bleep do we know?" if you value your sanity - it presents a worldview that is the complete polar opposite of Objectivism.

Oh yes, Asperger's Syndrome. Some clown once tried to suggest that I'd got that. I've had a look into the methodology of how they diagnose this syndrome and I found it very fishy. This is merely my take on the subject. The first alarm bell is the hint that social skills are something you're either born with or something you learn automatically, which isn't true. I don't think there is such a thing as intuition. In humans, communication and social behaviour is something you learn at an early age and use so often to the point where it becomes almost "automatic" (and therefore mistaken for as being instinctive). I don't know how old you are, but as an anology, compare how awkwardly you handled a car while you were learning to drive compared to how "automatically" you handled it after ten years of driving experience. The second alarm bell, I believe Dr Hurd sounded in an article a few years ago; modern psychology were trying to create a false dichotomy between being "social" and being "intellectual". No prizes for guessing which one they though was superior, but the point is that the dichotomy is nonsense.

Justify this "right" for individuals to own property. Judging from the responses you have recieved, I wouldn't bother replying; you're probably wasting your time. But if you do, then point out that property was purchased using one's money, which was obtained using one's labour. If you don't own your own labour, then you are slave. This quote demonstrates that he doesn't understand this : Where in the hell did you come up with this? (in response to your objection to being taxed in order to support others) And proof that he's a thug: To protect the capitalist from the worker and NOT the worker from the capitalist. You must be christian. Ask this fool what a "capitalist" is (watch the contradicions fly) and point out that anyone who works is a "worker". No where in this thread have I made my views known. In case you hadn't worked it out already, he's a Marxist of some variant or another. 1) The squalor that is sub-saharan Africa is about as laissez-faire as it gets. Where does the Congo rank on this list? Africa is mostly anarchist, with the occasional communist dictatorship. LFC does not exist there. blah blah blah...why does Western Europe enjoy a higher standard of living (better healthcare, lower crime rate, etc) than the U.S.? It doesn't. Look at the unemployment and inflation rates. BTW, where is this discussion being posted ?

I don't agree with "crimes of passion". There is no reason why someone should be let off the hook for, say, murder, just because they killed on impulse rather than thinking and plotting before hand. If anything, it's worse because an impulsive killer would be far more likely to "do it again".

The solution to your problem is simple : Sit in the lotus postition for half an hour, empty your mind of all thought and then contemplate the patterns of veins on a leaf. Just kidding. But seriously, you need to go into more detail. What were her annoying traits, what was she studying and why can't you just wait until she's finished her studies before getting back with her ?

In the context of being under a rational, objective law, which technicalities could possibly exist that would allow him to go free ?

Contrary to popular belief, Playboy isn't 100% porn. They've recently done an interview with Donald Trump. I'm pretty certain he wasn't posing for them either.

Ted Rall is a socialist. Like a cartoonist version of Michael Moore. Rather sad, really.

Ayn Rand interview on gun ownership : Interviewer : I’d like to turn to politics. You have stated that the government ought to be the exclusive agent of the use of force under objective law and justice. Ayn Rand : That’s right. Interviewer : Yet at the same time today we see an alarming rise in violent crime in this country and we see more and more people applying for gun permits to protect themselves. Do you see this as a dangerous trend, number one, and number two, do you favour any form of gun control laws ? Ayn Rand : I have given it no thought at all and off hand I would say no, the government should not control guns except in very marginal forms. I don’t think it’s very important because I don’t think it’s in physical terms that the decisions and the fate of this country will be determined. If this country falls apart altogether...if the government collapses…bankrupt…then having a handgun in your pocket isn’t going to save your life. What you need is ideas and other people who share those ideas…and fighting towards a proper civilized government, not handguns for personal protection. There was also an essay written called "Philosophy for the defence of firearms ownership." or something like that, but the link I had to it appears to be dead. I've still got the article in a .pdf, though, if anyone wants to read it.

Ding dong the witch is dead...

Perhaps reading Piekoff's essay might help you to understand what is going on. It mentions David Kelley too, who thinks along similar lines to Branden.

Psychology, like many of the humanities, has been taken over by Kantians. That's why it isn't progressing. I should know; I've been on the recieving end of the tripe.

Maybe it was scientology I was getting it confused with...

http://forum.ObjectivismOnline.com/index.php?showtopic=1334

Neotech's take on objectivism is metaphysically flawed. This is obvious from their belief in extra terrestrials, "zonpower" and other arbitary...err...concepts as the basis of their philosophy.