Template:Aynrand
Ayn Rand
Ayn Rand the novelist, whose two major works, The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged, were best sellers. She was a philosophers who was called revolutionary and a rebel. She called her ideas Objectivism, meaning a philosophy based on objective reality. That reality exists as an objective absolute outside of the influence of mere human opinion.
she sees herself "primarily the creator of a new code of morality which has so far been believed impossible. Namely, a morality not based on faith, not on arbitrary whim, not on emotion, not on arbitrary edicts, mystical or social, but on reason."
Of course for that "reason" to be ”Right Reason it must be the product of the true objective reality and not subject to the bias and prejudice opinions of men.
This new morality can only be "can be proved by means of logic". Which can be demonstrated to be true and necessary.
Her "morality is based on man’s life as a standard of value. And she goes so far as to say "That his highest moral purpose is the achievement of his own happiness."
Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are listed as some of those endowed natural rights past down from generation to generation originating from the beginning of our primordial creation and are not subject to parliaments or kings.
Scorn of churches
Some have said that, Rand is "out to destroy almost every edifice in the contemporary American way of life. Our Judeo-Christian religion, our modified, government-regulated capitalism, our rule by the majority will.”
She is accused of a "scorn churches, and the concept of God.”
The first accusation is certainly tru but not without some justification. Certainly she was "challenging the base of all these institutions."
But she also said, "I’m challenging the moral code of altruism. The precept that man’s moral duty is to live for others. That man must sacrifice himself to others. Which is the present day morality."
To understand Rand we should, if we love the reality of objective truth, try to understand what she may not understand and why.
Moral code
What is the "moral code of altruism?"
The definition of altruism includes the choice of charity which in the Judeo-Christian's Bible we find one Greek word translated into both "love" and "charity". And the only "code" on the subject seems to suggest that we Should "love our neighbors as ourselves".
This would include loving those endowed natural rights of our neighbor as much as our own.
Is it possible that the institutions Ayn scorned had distorted the Judeo-Christian's ethics or value?
If they had we should ask does that distortion remain with us today?
Democracy and communism
Mike Wallace states in an interview of Ayn Rand that "Democracy or Communism, take hold and affect the entire world".
What was the stand of Church institution on "Democracy or Communism"?
The "rule by the majority will" result from Democracy which the founder opposed and believed would fail. The preferred the virtues of a Republic where both rulers and the mob are restrained.
Karl Marx advocated democracy as the road to communism. And once the masses an vote themselves benefits and dainties a "modified, government-regulated capitalism" will soon not be capitalism but socialism and communism.
And like the One purse of Proverbs once the people consent the will run toward death and be caught in a snare and a trap.
The "contemporary American way of life" is decidedly different than the life in early America. And last I looked the the covetous practices of eating ate the tables of legal charity through the welfare State is a sin and not in conformity with to the Judeo-Christian religious values.
Miss Rand herself was essentially opposed the forcing of contribution of the people to provide welfare
Ayn Rand and Social Security
Someone tried to say that "...Ayn Rand signed up for Social Security and Medicare when it was clear the income from her novels could not support her in her old age. When pressed on it, she stated that she paid in, she should at least get that much out. When it was later pointed out that the payouts, particularly in medical bills, far exceeded everything she had ever paid in, she just shrugged it off."
They went on to say "She died after suffering from years of cancer - caused by her smoking, treatment paid for by the taxpayer's dime, damning a program that treated her illnesses while her followers used their 'rational self-interest' she advocated to decide not to help her pay." http://www.thefogbow.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=61&t=954&start=400 say her
That simply was not true. She opposed the idea and never signed up for benefits[1] and was not broke at the time of her death.[2]
There was an interesting rebuttal[2] to these evidently false accusations against Ayn Rand and the "by the anti-Ayn brigade".
Not the way it works
I noticed one comment in the article:
"... in 1966 Rand's Objectivist Newsletter said that not collecting from programs that one is forced to finance would be wrong. It said:
" ...the victims, who opposed such laws, have a clear right to any refund of their own money—and they would not advance the cause of freedom if they left their money unclaimed, for the benefit of the welfare-state administration."
I hear this all the time from people who want to collect SS payments now but the fact is there is no "refund of their own money".
That is not the nature of social security and there is no fund nor reserve fund to collect from. In fact, there is no money in any fund for Social Security. Any benefits taken will be extracted along with interest from your children and grandchildren.
Everything you apply for from Social Security curses your children with more debt.
I understand that at this point most people need help from or are completely dependent on Social Security and that dependance, and therefore bondage, was the plan.
But if anyone is ever going to be free in the world then people will need to start making the sacrifices that liberty requires. They will need to start doing what Christ said:
- "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you." Matthew 6:33
The unseen choice
In an interview with Mike Wallace Miss Rand stated "... if I am challenging the base of all these institutions, I’m challenging the moral code of altruism. The precept that man’s moral duty is to live for others. That man must sacrifice himself to others. Which is the present day morality."
According to Herod and Hagel we may believe that government may have a right to take away from the people but that right must be granted for it to be just. Maybe this is why God told us to make no covenants.
- "He can always correct it. Man has free will. If a man wants love he should correct his weaknesses, or his flaws, and he may deserve it. But he cannot expect the unearned, neither in love, nor in money, neither in matter, nor spirit." Ayn Rand[3]
"Man has the free will to choose and to think. If they change their thinking we do not have to go into dictatorship."[3]
Changing your thinking is the meaning of "Repent!"
The choice is to seek the true kingdom of God and His righteousness which is a Pure Republic that proclaims "liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubile unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family."(Leviticus 25:10)
To day the people are a scattered flock where the slothful are under tribute and her princes are like wolves.[4]
- ↑ "Pryor argued with Rand because Ayn did not want Social Security, nor did Rand go out and seek it, or Medicare, even though doing so was entirely consistent with her own ethics. What Pryor said was that she tried to convince Rand to sign up and they argued. Pryor says Rand "was never involved other than to sign the power of attorney. I did the rest." Beyond that Pryor said nothing else. There is no indication whether Pryor used the power of attorney to apply for benefits, or whether Rand knew about it. There is no indication that such benefits were ever used. There is simply no evidence to show Rand "Grabbed Social Security and Medicare When She Needed Them." "
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lying about Ayn Rand and Social Security TUESDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2011
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Mike Wallace 1959 interviews of Ayn Rand.
- ↑ Wolves
- Habakkuk 1:8 "Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle [that] hasteth to eat. 9 They shall come all for violence: their faces shall sup up [as] the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand."
- Zephaniah 3:3 Her princes within her [are] roaring lions; her judges [are] evening wolves; they gnaw not the bones till the morrow.
- Matthew 7:15 "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.4 Her prophets [are] light [and] treacherous persons: her priests have polluted the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law. 5 The just LORD [is] in the midst thereof; he will not do iniquity: every morning doth he bring his judgment to light, he faileth not; but the unjust knoweth no shame."
- Matthew 10:16 Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
- Luke 10:3 "Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves."
- Acts 20:29 "For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock."