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Philosophy On One Foot-The Basics of Objectivism by Ayn Rand

Posted by Zenphamy 8 years, 5 months ago to Philosophy
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During the last week, we've had 2 or 3 posts related to Conservatism vs Objectivism. I ran into this brief reply by Ayn Rand when she was asked if she could explain her philosophy while standing on one foot.

Her entire reply is well worth a read, but the last sentence of her reply is exactly on point to the disagreements expressed by some commenters in those referenced posts:

" Which is why philosophy cannot be discussed while standing on one foot—nor while standing on two feet on both sides of every fence. This last is the predominant philosophical position today, particularly in the field of politics."

That reply was in 1962, but still addresses politics today, particularly here in Galt's Gulch. .


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  • Posted by ewv 6 years, 7 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Economic freedom cannot exist without a political system protecting the rights of the individual. They necessarily go together in reality as a social system. There is no such thing as any economic system apart from a social context with some kind of government within a social system.

    We have never had a complete capitalist system. Today we have a badly mixed system. It does not follow that all systems today are "socialist". Ours is a mixture of freedom and controls. It is no more "socialist" as its essence than "capitalist", with degrees of both; it has socialist aspects to it and capitalist aspects.

    Ayn Rand's definition is not "goofy". She gave the reasons for the definition of the concept capitalism in "What is Capitalism?". She also explained why 'anarcho-capitalism' is a floating abstraction with no possible meaning in reality and with no free market possible, not "by definition" capitalism. She did not say, let alone "pretend", that "free market" and "capitalism" are synonyms.

    The conceptual understanding and explanations of this are not "rote learning from someone else's book". If you have such condescending contempt for the people here that you pronounce we are not "able to follow the argument, as it requires actual thinking, inductive, objective from reality", then isn't the forum for you to be posting.
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  • Posted by dbhalling 6 years, 7 months ago in reply to this comment.
    "Libertarians and pacifists both seem to want shortcuts to results and actions without going through the work required to arrive at objectively derived and based actions rather than reactions."

    Hear Hear
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  • Posted by 6 years, 7 months ago in reply to this comment.
    No--what I just exposed, is self-interest/egoism which arises from the principles of AR's analysis, development, and descriptions of her philosophy of Objectivism. A=A and 'I own my life' --> 'Self defense' and 'I own my property'. There simply is NO 'force my neighbor' or 'protect others' derived through the logical, reasoned morality, and principles of Objectivism. A philosophy of 'non-voluntarism' is called slavery or thuggery. Libertarians and pacifists both seem to want shortcuts to results and actions without going through the work required to arrive at objectively derived and based actions rather than reactions.

    But hang in there and you might get there eventually.
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  • Posted by ewv 6 years, 7 months ago in reply to this comment.
    'Organization' is an abstraction referring to the people who make it up. To say that an organization does anything means that the people in it are doing it through acting in their role as members and on behalf of members.

    I don't know what "dribble" you are referring to or what it has to do with this thread.
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  • -2
    Posted by freetrader 6 years, 8 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I always thought it was goofy where rand redefined capitalism. capitalism is an economic system, and it does not necessarily mean free market either, and it is not a political system.

    Regardless, lets pretend free market and capitalism are the same words. Then, by definition, the only political system that is fully an economic system of capitalism is by definition systems of anarcho-capitalism. All present commonly used systems think that in some cases, no matter how limited they are; police, fire, roads, they can force people to contribute wealth, time, and life to it to protect others and for the greater good and are, by definition, socialist - for the greater good.

    It is not necessary to set up governments this way. Please note I am not an anarcho capitalist, but I expect most people here not to be able to follow the argument, as it requires actual thinking, inductive, objective from reality, as opposed to rote learning from someone elses book.
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  • -1
    Posted by freetrader 6 years, 8 months ago in reply to this comment.
    the only philosophy of non-voluntarism which you just exposed is I can force my neighbor to do something beyond protecting myself and others which is not initiating force.
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  • Posted by freetrader 6 years, 8 months ago in reply to this comment.
    rights aren't protected at all by organizations, as they are not alive. They are protected by people. who may organize to do it more effectively in an organization, if that is what they find works.

    The dribble that 'if you do not agree with someone you do not understand them', that 'I must agree with a philosophy instead of objective reality', and 'the implied guilt trip and appeal to the masses' is the exact type of immature, non-objective, non reasoning trash I'd expect to find on an open forum as opposed to ones that only are for those using reason and reality - not appeals to authority. I made this objection to the forum when I signed up a year and a half ago.
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  • Posted by 7 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    I'm not sure you get Objectivism. Voluntarism, as well as anarcho-capitalism lack any philosophical principles from which to base their NIF belief as a basis of society. Most, strike me as dedicated pacifists wishing for an Utopian ideal, with absolutely no in depth understanding of the principles of AR's philosophy. They very much remind me of the 'Can't We All Get Along' and 'Give Love A Chance' groups of the 60's and 70's. Few seem to realize that contracted enforcement of NIF is actually a violation of NIF and suffers the problem of competition and conflict between different 'enforcement companies' and differing standards of 'right's protection'.

    AR's description of an Individual states it well: "Do not make the mistake of the ignorant who think that an individualist is a man who says: “I’ll do as I please at everybody else’s expense.” An individualist is a man who recognizes the inalienable individual rights of man—his own and those of others.

    An individualist is a man who says: “I will not run anyone’s life—nor let anyone run mine. I will not rule nor be ruled. I will not be a master nor a slave. I will not sacrifice myself to anyone—nor sacrifice anyone to myself."
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  • Posted by dbhalling 7 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Anarcho-capitalism is an oxymoron. Capitalism is political system where people's natural rights are protected and the economic system that develops when people's natural rights are protected.
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  • Posted by ewv 7 years, 11 months ago in reply to this comment.
    You do not understand Ayn Rand's philosophy, in particular the purpose and nature of a proper government. It is incompatible with anarchism. Rights are not protected by throwing them on an 'open market' of force.
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  • -2
    Posted by freetrader 7 years, 11 months ago
    "The ideal political-economic system is laissez-faire capitalism. It is a system where men deal with one another, not as victims and executioners, nor as masters and slaves, but as traders, by free, voluntary exchange to mutual benefit. It is a system where no man may obtain any values from others by resorting to physical force, and no man may initiate the use of physical force against others. The government acts only as a policeman that protects man’s rights; it uses physical force only in retaliation and only against those who initiate its use, such as criminals or foreign invaders. In a system of full capitalism, there should be (but, historically, has not yet been) a complete separation of state and economics, in the same way and for the same reasons as the separation of state and church."

    State government by definition includes the idea of initiation of force - even if it only includes simple things like taxation and requiring citizens to be in or outside it's boundaries - but obviously it is much worse in the real world then that - as sacrificing such a basic moral principle at the start would lead.

    Furthermore, any non-volunteer actions like that would by definition affect the economy, and therefore not be a complete separation of government and economy, as economists such as Walter Williams love to point out.

    Either volunteerism or anarcho-capitalism would seem to fit Ayn Rand's criteria, but she didn't like anarcho-capitalism.

    I don't think she was very consistent on this principle. As I am, I note it.
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  • Posted by Technocracy 8 years, 5 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Ayn Rand talked a bit about this in "Return of the Primitive - The Anti-Industrial Revolution"

    Reading this book currently, struck me as appropriate for this discussion.
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  • Posted by ewv 8 years, 5 months ago in reply to this comment.
    It was also published in The Objectivist Newsletter in Aug 1962.

    All the articles in The Ayn Rand Column are worth reading. Aside from the full series of 26 columns in the LA Times (and which were also available for syndication), the additional essays include a few from the 1940s.
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  • Posted by ewv 8 years, 5 months ago
    Ayn Rand's 'philosophy while standing on one foot' summary was published in "Introducing Objectivism", June 17, 1962, her first article as a columnist for the Los Angeles Times. It is republished in full along with the rest of the columns in The Ayn Rand Column, 2nd ed with additional articles, 1998 https://estore.aynrand.org/p/262/the-... This context and source was omitted from the link you gave, which is also incomplete (and re-arranged from the original).

    As newspaper columns the articles were only about 800 words, but "Introducing Objectivism" was still packed with essentials in elaborations of each of the 'standing on one foot' items. A major emphasis in the last half was her contrast between her philosophy as the foundation of a free society versus the ethics and politics of altruism and statism -- which is also especially relevant to your immediate purpose of "That reply was in 1962, but still addresses politics today, particularly here in Galt's Gulch".
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  • Posted by MountainLady 8 years, 5 months ago in reply to this comment.
    Great post, HeroWorship.

    Your "counters" remind me of Saul Alinsky's exhortation to "Use their morals against them." in "Rules for Radicals."
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  • Posted by Mamaemma 8 years, 5 months ago in reply to this comment.
    That's a very effective way to say it, Tech. No longer just not celebrated, but actually vilified. Excellent point.
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  • Posted by Mamaemma 8 years, 5 months ago in reply to this comment.
    That's a very effective way to say it, Tech. No longer just not celebrated, but actually vilified. Excellent point.
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  • Posted by PURB 8 years, 5 months ago
    This excellent, succinct summary of Objectivism first appeared in Rand's first column for the Los Angeles Times on June 17, 1962. (It was also published in The Objectivist Newsletter, August 1962.)
    If anyone is interested in this or other Ayn Rand manuscripts, please contact me. Michael

    http://www.penultimaterarebooks.com/
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