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How's your mama 'n 'em?

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Ed Salti here. Old dude living in the Texas Hill Country. Been barging in on assorted posts here and there. Thought I should introduce myself. Love this Forum. Would have killed for something like this (in a most Objective way, of course) when I first discovered Objectivism back in Ought 61 and couldn't find anyone who gave a damn.

Spent the next 20 years or so reading and re-reading all the fiction, non-fiction, and the Objectivist Newletter, etc. Life demanded full attention for the next 25 years or so, and I just got back into reviewing the written word. Good to be back.

Spent most of my adult life in the Air Force. Saw a lot of the US and the rest of the world. Settled in NM for awhile but moved back to TX when we heard there were going to be grandbabies here. Two grand grandgirls in Austin. Others elsewhere, but nowhere I'd like to live.

Got one granddaughter just turned 11. She is very bright and a voracious reader. Opinions, please. Is she just a tad young yet for Anthem? I'm thinking for her 12th birthday. Anyone?

Age and mileage have given me an opinion on just about everything. What I don't have an opinion on, I have an opinion as to why I don't. If I barge in somewhere a bit clumsily, smite me about the head and shoulders. Age, mileage, and a long association with the military has given me a hide like a rhinoseros. I accept constructive criticism very well. I've had a lot of practice.

See you about the campi. ES

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Welcome to OO.net

Got one granddaughter just turned 11. She is ver bright and a voracious reader. Opinions, please. Is she just a tad young yet for Anthem? I'm thinking for her 12th birthday. Anyone?
12th birthday might be fine. My son's teacher started on Anthem for the 10 and 11 year olds, but he was having them read it aloud and explaining it to them. A well-read 12 year old should get it.
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Got one granddaughter just turned 11. She is very bright and a voracious reader. Opinions, please. Is she just a tad young yet for Anthem? I'm thinking for her 12th birthday. Anyone?

Welcome to the forum!

I would also recommend Sophie's World. It is a good introduction to philosophy in general in the form of fiction. Great way to encourage a child to start thinking about different ideas and their validity. Great opportinity for grandpa's wisdom to shine :).

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Welcome to the forum! I'm glad to see some more older people popping up here now. I knew that older O'ist's existed they just don't come here often. It's nice to here from the first generation of life-long (or pretty close to it anyway) Objectivists and how they have dealt with life in a world somewhat hostile to our ideals over the period of decades instead of just months or years.

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Thanks. I try not to also. However, my wife is also retired career Air Force, and I do. Try to hold her against me, that is. :)

LOL and mine is Canadian Army, and an Officer at that.

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I read anthem when I was about 12. I think it is quite likely that she is ready to handle it. If you haven't already, you should check out the North Texas Objectivist Society. We meet once or twice a month. It would be kind of a long drive for you, but I think it would be worth it.

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Hello Ed and welcome to the form. I couldn’t help but notice that you said that you were in AF intel. I myself was an Intelligence Specialist in the Navy and got out as an E-6. Did you ever serve at a JIC?

Mercy!! Squids, Aussies, and Canucks. See what happens when you leave the gate open. :)

Never did, Rearden. Managed to spend most of my career at the operational lever. TAC recce, running the photoprocessing and interpretation function. Closest I got to the Joint arena was Hq, TAC, back in the 70s before the purple suit push really gained momentum. You?

Maybe the two of us can do something to dispel the nasty rumor that military intelligence is an oxymoron.

Thanks for the welcome. I'm just so proud to be here.

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Got one granddaughter just turned 11. She is very bright and a voracious reader. Opinions, please. Is she just a tad young yet for Anthem? I'm thinking for her 12th birthday. Anyone?

My son read and enjoyed Anthem when he was in 4th grade and was about 9 or 10.

We didn't encourage him to read The Fountainhead until he was a junior in high school and had developed a serious passion for astronomy. At that point, we thought he could understand and identify with a man driven by a love of his work.

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Welcome to the forum!

I would also recommend Sophie's World. It is a good introduction to philosophy in general in the form of fiction. Great way to encourage a child to start thinking about different ideas and their validity. Great opportinity for grandpa's wisdom to shine :).

Thank you, ma'am. Looked up the info on Sophie's World and ordered a copy. Will read it first, then pass it along to the grandgirl. Wouldn't want her to catch her grampa unprepared to answer a question. :)

Your reward, should you not know about it is: paperbackswap.com.

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Mercy!! Squids, Aussies, and Canucks. See what happens when you leave the gate open. :)

G'uhhhhhhhDAY!

BTW, it is usually safe to leave the gate open, so long as the cattle grid is functional. The ops here are good with their rifles when the sheep learn to do commando-rolls over it. Mmmmmmm.... bbq...

JJM

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Welcome Ed! I wouldn't say there's a shortage of interesting characters on this board, but always nice to have a new one..

Welcome to OO.net

12th birthday might be fine. My son's teacher started on Anthem for the 10 and 11 year olds, but he was having them read it aloud and explaining it to them. A well-read 12 year old should get it.

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.

I read The Fountainhead when I was 13.

In my opinion, there's nothing a bright 13 year old can't read and comprehend.

Welcome to the Forum.

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.

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How you durrin?

Welcome to the forum!

I love the title of you thread. I don't know if your reference has anything to do with Shirley Q. Liquor, but that's what it reminded me of.

Thank you, sir. Can't tell you how good it is to find this place. Not familiar with Shirley, but with a name like that, I will definitely go in search. "How's your momma 'n 'em" is a Southernism/Texasism. I am an incurable wordhawk and phrases like that stick to me like a football on Fred Biletnekoff.

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G'uhhhhhhhDAY!

BTW, it is usually safe to leave the gate open, so long as the cattle grid is functional. The ops here are good with their rifles when the sheep learn to do commando-rolls over it. Mmmmmmm.... bbq...

JJM

:D:lol: Love it!! Cattle grid, huh? As a kid in Louisiana, we called them cattle gaps. Never saw the commando-roll. Always wondered how the rascals got out.

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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.

One member, Sophia, recommended SOPHIE'S WORLD. Don't know if you're familiar with it. Looks like an ideal book for a 12-year old girl. I ordered one for my granddaughter.

but then there's that new religion of sacrifice known as environmentalism, which is much more insidious.

Twelve is an age of developing social consciousness. My daughter is very level-headed about environmentalism, homelessness, global warming, etc., but she will be resistant to a head-on assault on her church. I'm not going to beat the door down, just open it a crack.

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.

I saw it mentioned in another thread and immediately thought what a great idea it is. It's been decades since I read it and will re-read it again. TF might have to wait a few years. If she wants more, I'll tell her about it.

I didn't fully comprehend the nuances of the "rape by engraved invitation" scene.

A worthy subject for another thread: Ayn Rand's depictions of sexuality. I'm sure it's been done. Just haven't found it yet.

OOPS!! Gotta figure out what I did wrong.

Edited by JMeganSnow
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Never saw the commando-roll. Always wondered how the rascals got out.

I read it in a UK newspaper website late last year. Apparently it takes just one sheep to figure it out, and when it does it the rest learn by observation pretty quickly. That's when you try to figure out which was The One and then break out the mint sauce.

JJM

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