Introduction

[Steven N.]

Hello. I'm new to the forum. I actually found this website on accident. I recently read "Atlas Shrugged". It was the first time I'd read anything by Ayn Rand and I enjoyed it very much. Now I'd like to learn as much about Ayn Rand as possible. Unfortunately, I live in Taiwan and the English book selection here is terrible. (I purchased the book while visiting my family in the U.S. last month before returning to Taiwan.) There's no way I could find a book of hers here. I hate doing research online, but it appears I have no other outlet. Perhaps some one could suggest a good, free online research page for Ayn Rand's works.

I can't begin to express how refreshing it was to hear the ideas of Ayn Rand. The philosophers I'd studied before were: Plato, Des Cartes, Kant, Kierkkegard, Sarte, Husserl, and Jaspers. Despite my limited knowledge of philosophy, I'd become bored with it and quit studying it for the last three years. However, "Atlas Shrugged" has revived my interest in philosophy and I now plan on learning as much about Objectivism as possible. Her philosophy is truly unique compared with what I'd read before and I can honestly say it makes more sense, as well.

"Atlas Shrugged" has left me with many questions about Objectivism and I'll start with one about its stance on the environment. As I said I live in Taiwan. For those of you who don't know Taiwan is a small island nation, with a population of 23 million, in S.E. Asia. It has the 11th largest GDP in the world. There are factories and businesses everywhere. It's also the second most densly populated country in the world. The government has basically no rules regarding environmentalism at all. (which I assume Objectivism agrees with) The rules that are in place are simply there to please the U.S. and European governments that advocate them, but the government doesn't enforce them.

The urban landscape of Taiwan is absolutely disgusting. Every building that was built before ten years ago has disgusting blacks streaks going up its sides from the smog and acid rain. Furthermore, the emissions controls on vehicles are never enforced, which has left nearly every bus and semi spewing large amounts of white smoke out and nothing is done to stop this. I drive a motor cycle I can't tell you how annoying it is having smoke in your face the whole time you're driving.

I'm not sure, but I assume that Objectivism doesn't support government regulations on the environment. If this is the case than does it believe that corporations and private citizens should put the regulations on themselves voluntarilly?

Really, I'm curious to see what it would say regarding a country like Taiwan, which is not a poor country, should do to make it a more beautiful place without government regulation. Because I can't imagine that the citizens here would do it themselves. They simply don't care.

Thanks.

[AshRyan]

Welcome to the forum, Steven!

Regarding your question about environmental regulations, may I suggest you do a search on this forum for that topic? We have had probably several threads already devoted to it, and you may find them helpful.

[Betsy]

Welcome Steven!

Now I'd like to learn as much about Ayn Rand as possible.  Unfortunately, I live in Taiwan and the English book selection here is terrible. (I purchased the book while visiting my family in the U.S. last month before returning to Taiwan.)  There's no way I could find a book of hers here.  I hate doing research online, but it appears I have no other outlet.  Perhaps some one could suggest a good, free online research page for Ayn Rand's works.

Check the Ayn Rand Institute web site: http://www.aynrand.org. They have a great deal of information about Objectivism online. Then e-mail them explaining your predicament. They may be able to steer you to individuals and libraries in Taiwan that can lend you books or other ways you can get them.

[Steven N.]

Welcome Steven!

Check the Ayn Rand Institute web site: http://www.aynrand.org.  They have a great deal of information about Objectivism online.  Then e-mail them explaining your predicament.  They may be able to steer you to individuals and libraries in Taiwan that can lend you books or other ways you can get them.

Thank you, Betsy. I'll look there.

[Steven N.]

Regarding your question about environmental regulations, may I suggest you do a search on this forum for that topic?  We have had probably several threads already devoted to it, and you may find them helpful.

Thanks, Ash. After I read this I looked around and found a lot of information on environmentalism. This will give me something to look at for a couple of days.

[Fred Weiss]

You might want to consider the following in relation to the industrialization in Taiwan vs. the supposed "environmental" problems. Based on just a quick look at some figures posted at various sites on the Internet, average life expectancy in Taiwan appears to be at or above 70 years (which puts it in the same category as the other leading industrial countries in the world).

Here by comparison is the life expectancy published by WHO of some unindustrialized African countries:

"Sierra Leona, 25.9 years of healthy life for babies born in 1999; Niger, 29.1; Malawi, 29.4; Zambia, 30.3; Botswana, 32.3; Uganda, 32.7; Rwanda, 32.8; Zimbabwe, 32.9; Mali, 33.1; and Ethiopia, 33.5."

I only mention this in response to the implication of environmentalists that industrialization is bad for our health.

Life expectancy in fact about doubled in the 20th Cent. in the industrial West.

For those who think that life expectancy is merely a result of medical advances and improvements in "public health" works (such as modern sewage removal, etc.), that ignores the fact that such developments would have been impossible without industrialization - and of course the primary beneficiaries of such developments live in industrialized countries.

Separately, pollution abatement, even by law, is not necessarily inconsistent with laissez-faire. However that is a separate and complicated subject.

Fred Weiss

[stephen_speicher]

Now I'd like to learn as much about Ayn Rand as possible.  Unfortunately, I live in Taiwan and the English book selection here is terrible. (I purchased the book while visiting my family in the U.S. last month before returning to Taiwan.)  There's no way I could find a book of hers here.

Pardon my ignorance about Taiwan, but can you not use services like credit cards or PayPal to purchase new or inexpensive used copies of Ayn Rand's books which are widely available on the internet? Is there a problem with money exchange, or perhaps with shipping? Something else?

Anyway, welcome to the forum, Steven.

[Tom Rexton]

The government has basically no rules regarding environmentalism at all.  (which I assume Objectivism agrees with)  The rules that are in place are simply there to please the U.S. and European governments that advocate them, but the government doesn't enforce them.

The urban landscape of Taiwan is absolutely disgusting.  Every building that was built before ten years ago has disgusting blacks streaks going up its sides from the smog and acid rain. Furthermore, the emissions controls on vehicles are never enforced, which has left nearly every bus and semi spewing large amounts of white smoke out and nothing is done to stop this.  I drive a motor cycle I can't tell you how annoying it is having smoke in your face the whole time you're driving.

I'm not sure, but I assume that Objectivism doesn't support government regulations on the environment.  If this is the case than does it believe that corporations and private citizens should put the regulations on themselves voluntarilly? 

Really, I'm curious to see what it would say regarding a country like Taiwan, which is not a poor country, should do to make it a more beautiful place without government regulation.  Because I can't imagine that the citizens here would do it themselves.  They simply don't care.

Thanks.

Actually, they do care. But I'm sure they'd prefer it to the even more filthy, unsanitary, and unhealthy "environment" in which the people of the Third World live.

You should keep the full context in mind when evaluating air pollution and gas emissions that results from rapid and extensive industrialization. These results are almost inevitable for any developing country, but consider the incomparable advances in health, sanitation and longevity that results from industrialization.

If you evaluate them carefully, you'll see that there are far more advantages to industrialization.

And as for environmental regulations per se, they are illegitimate functions of the government. The government can legislate such regulations only insofar as they violate the property rights of individuals (e.g., dumping trash or toxic chemicals into someone's lake).

BTW, welcome to the forum.

[Steven N.]

Actually, they do care.  But I'm sure they'd prefer it to the even more filthy, unsanitary, and unhealthy "environment" in which the people of the Third World live. 

You should keep the full context in mind when evaluating air pollution and gas emissions that results from rapid and extensive industrialization.  These results are almost inevitable for any developing country, but consider the incomparable advances in health, sanitation and longevity that results from industrialization.

If you evaluate them carefully, you'll see that there are far more advantages to industrialization.

And as for environmental regulations per se, they are illegitimate functions of the government.  The government can legislate such regulations only insofar as they violate the property rights of individuals (e.g., dumping trash or toxic chemicals into someone's lake). 

BTW, welcome to the forum. 

I think you guys have me wrong here. I don't sympathize with the environmentalists at all. I don't think they have the right to go to developing countries and tell them they have to cut back on their emissions or things of that nature. Furthermore, I'd have to be an idiot to argue that undeveloped societies have more benefits than industrialized ones. I couldn't imagine living in an agricultural society like Cambodia. It sucks really bad there. Even when compared to a country like Thailand, which is somewhat industrialized, I have ten times the opportunities here in Taiwan, because of its industrialization, than I'd have in Thailand.

I simply wanted to know two things: First, what would Objectivism say about my having to breath in superfluous amounts of exhaust every day when I drive.

Second, who is responsible for the disgusting black streaks on all of the buildings?

After doing a little research on the website the answer to my first question should be that Objectivism does not condone any environmental laws at all. However, if the government sees the smoke spewing out of a truck and into my face they can stop the truck and make him fix it so it doesn't go into my face anymore. Please tell me if I'm wrong about this.

I'm going to do more research but I'm still not sure about the answer to my second question. I recently bought a condo here and I know that ten years from now it's going to have disgusting black streaks going down the side of it just like every other building here, thus decreasing my property value. Now, if I can't prove the black streaks are caused from one specific entity, but rather they're caused from multiple sources, such as vehicles, factories, etc.; then who is responsible for my property damage?

I apologize for the confusion regarding my questions. Clearly I should've been more specific.

[Steven N.]

Pardon my ignorance about Taiwan, but can you not use services like credit cards or PayPal to purchase new or inexpensive used copies of Ayn Rand's books which are widely available on the internet? Is there a problem with money exchange, or perhaps with shipping? Something else?

Anyway, welcome to the forum, Steven.

I can't use my credit card because the information was stolen somehow and someone tried charging $4000.00 worth of timberland boots onto my account. I have no idea how long it will take for this to be resolved.

Furthermore, shipping from the U.S. to Taiwan is often quite expensive and I'm trying to save as much money as I can for the next to years so I can start a business.

[AwakeAndFree]

Furthermore, shipping from the U.S. to Taiwan is often quite expensive and I'm trying to save as much money as I can for the next to years so I can start a business.

If you're thinking of going into business, getting Ayn Rand's books is one of the best investments you can make. From my experience you can get crates full of used Ayn Rand books on eBay for a very low price.