Why hasn't Objectivism won already?

[BlackSabbath]

One feature common to almost all modern intellectual frameworks is the postulation of dubious psychological mechanisms to explain why non-believers reject the theory ('repression' in Freud, 'false consciousness' in Marx, 'inauthenticity' in Heidegger, and I could go on). I dont think Objectivism needs to engage in similar rationalisations - different people disagree with Objectivism for different reasons, and trying to say that there is one underlying cause at the root of all this ('evasion') just runs into the same problems as the mechanisms mentioned above.

Or it could just be that they're all thick and dishonest.

[Acadi]

Why is it that many people who have read even both Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead still remain unconvinced of the absolutism of reason and are so hostile to those who are?  It's so hard to imagine why.  I couldn't possibly deny such a cogent argument against irrationality.  What could possible be their psychological motivation for rejecting reason?

They read with wrong motives, therefore they could not feel desire for Rand's heros. Rand wanted to appeal to those looking for truth. As she said herself, "The truth is not for everybody, only for those who seek it." This eagerness for truth does not describe everyone obviously.

Objectivism, you must remember, projects man at his highest, but this is not easily understood by the common people. Being the highest is not being the most visible, and a lot of people do not spend the time to look up that high.

To act on Objectvist principles is hard work, as some people pointed out earlier; you cannot learn it in a day, it takes lots of time to consistently hold the principles. If you fail the first time, you must go back to it later, again, to try to learn something new, try to learn the principles again, look for new examples and proofs, apply them to your own life's assignments and tests, and finally gain a confidence for Objectivism.

Oh PLEASE get personal.  Otherwise Objectivism is just something to talk about and not a guide to living.

Taking Objectivism personally is the only way to do it right.  

Right, to take Objectivism impersonally is quit worthless. This philosophy requires dedication to work to its full meaning, just like a lot of other philosophies.

Edited July 17, 2005 by Acadi