“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 one who thinks ‘I will not sacrifice myself to anyone — nor sacrifice anyone to myself.’”
Far too many who dislike or criticise Rand fail to make this distinction. They either don't put in the time or don't want to understand what she means by "selfish" and mistakenly (or belligerently) denounce her for it.
Very well put - although I stand politically on the anarcho-collectivist part of the spectrum, it is of my understanding that only when individuality is maximized without restraints we will see true collectivism as a consequence of it
As always, Objectivists have chosen to take a single word as validation of Rand’s caricature view of reality. Rand is the only one whose definition of “collectivism” denotes such evil as she asserts, but for Objectivists, that’s enough. Circular reasoning and rationalism is all you have.
Well written! I found these words of his even more chilling:
“We will prove that there is no problem too large for government to solve, and no concern too small for it to care about".
“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 one who thinks ‘I will not sacrifice myself to anyone — nor sacrifice anyone to myself.’”
Far too many who dislike or criticise Rand fail to make this distinction. They either don't put in the time or don't want to understand what she means by "selfish" and mistakenly (or belligerently) denounce her for it.
Very well put - although I stand politically on the anarcho-collectivist part of the spectrum, it is of my understanding that only when individuality is maximized without restraints we will see true collectivism as a consequence of it
As always, Objectivists have chosen to take a single word as validation of Rand’s caricature view of reality. Rand is the only one whose definition of “collectivism” denotes such evil as she asserts, but for Objectivists, that’s enough. Circular reasoning and rationalism is all you have.