I am, therefore I must think...
The purpose of this blog is similar to many blogs out there: to spread ideas. Particularly my ideas. I consider myself a rational, active minded person. I love the discussion of ideas but if you use any logical fallacies, prepare to be called out on them. I am interested in individual liberty and the philosophies involved with liberty. I refuse to label myself as this type of philosopher or that, because I think broad labels lead to dogmatism and regression of ideas. Respect begets respect, so keep that in mind when commenting.
Please feel free to browse through my public posts to get a feel for who I am and what I think. If you are not a member, I have just recently made it so you can comment on my public posts, however the comment will first need to be approved by me, so please be patient. If you wish to view the rest of my writings (70% of this blog is only viewable to members) please register or login. If you like what I have to say, be sure to subscribe to my RSS feed as well: 
MAF
I get wrapped up in politics more than I like. I am in an almost constant state of disgust with anything I read about our government and the politicians that are supposed to represent us. I read the following in “Ayn Rand Answers” last night that helped me remember what is important.
Libertarians provide intermediate steps toward your goals. Why don’t you support them?
Please don’t tell me that they’re pursuing my goals. I have not asked for, nor do I accept, the help of intellectual cranks. I want philosophically educated people: those who understand ideas, care about ideas, and spread the right ideas. That’s how my philosophy will spread, just as philosophy has throughout history: by means of people who understand ideas and teach them to others. Further it should be clear that I reject the filthy slogan “The end justifies the means.” That was originated by the Jesuits and accepted enthusiastically by the Communists and the Nazis. The end does not justify the means; you cannot achieve anything good by evil means. Finally, libertarians aren’t worthy of being the means to any end, let alone the end of spreading Objectivism.
-Ayn Rand, page 74 of “Ayn Rand Answers”
As I read more answers to similar questions about politics I started to understand what Ayn Rand was saying over and over again: stay out of politics and get your ideas into the educational system. She said the best way to promote and spread philosophical ideals is through education and voicing your opinion when it matters. Politics are short-sighted and an ineffective way to spread ideas when compared to education.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Hollywood director James Cameron displayed on Monday artifacts that he said might have come from the tomb of Jesus, which once contained his remains, those of Mary Magdalene, and possibly their son, Judah.
But others said it was just a publicity stunt backed by the man who made the movie “Titanic” and “The Terminator” to promote a documentary and a book, and likely untrue.
Cameron and a team of scholars showed two stone ossuaries, or bone boxes, that he said might have once contained the bones of Jesus and Mary Magdalene. The findings are the subject of a documentary he produced called “The Lost Tomb of Jesus” and a book “The Jesus Family Tomb.”
…read more here.
I think Dawkins set atheism up to be a great way of gaining publicity. I’m not dissing Dawkins, I just think that movie makers like Cameron are watching popular trends, and one of these popular trends is the rise of vocal atheists.
While browsing an Objectivist blog, I was reminded of an old joke that used to circulate into my e-mail.
DEMOCRATIC You have two cows. Your neighbor has none. You feel guilty for being successful. Barbara Streisand sings for you.
REPUBLICANISM You have two cows. Your neighbor has none. So?
SOCIALIST You have two cows. The government takes one and gives it to your neighbor. You form a cooperative to tell him how to manage his cow.
COMMUNIST You have two cows. The government seizes both and provides you with milk. You wait in line for hours to get it. It is expensive and sour.
CAPITALISM, AMERICAN STYLE You have two cows. You sell one, buy a bull, and build a herd of cows.
BUREAUCRACY, AMERICAN STYLE You have two cows. Under the new farm program the government pays you to shoot one, milk the other, and then pours the milk down the drain.
AMERICAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You sell one, lease it back to yourself and do an IPO on the 2nd one. You force the two cows to produce the milk of four cows. You are surprised when one cow drops dead. You spin an announcement to the analysts stating you have downsized and are reducing expenses. Your stock goes up.
I think it’s time to modify some of these. Comments away!
I want to correct the common misconception about Objectivism’s support of laissez-faire capitalism. Basically Ayn Rand said that businesses should be free to do what they please and individual rights should be protected by the government. This means that businesses would be unregulated BUT held responsible if they violated any individual rights in the course of doing business. I hate it when people discredit Objectivism solely on its support of laissez-faire capitalism, because there is more to it than just support of the classic amoral laissez-faire capitalism. In the Objectivist philosophy there is still protection from harmful business activity with a lack of regulation. Objectivism assumes businesses will not violate individual rights, but holds businesses responsible if they do, without any preemptive regulation. Integrate a protection of individual rights to the capitalist equation and laissez-faire capitalism works perfectly.
When I was in school we were taught that Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the greatest American President that ever lived. We were told that he helped pull America out of the great depression and single handedly defeated the Nazis. Well, I am sorry to dash all of your childhood images of this man but I must. FDR was a socialist and not a very bright one. He had a “GREAT” plan called the “Second Bill of Rights” (or “Economic Bill of Rights”.) I won’t even comment on this, I’ll just let it stand on its own:
The Second Bill of Rights GUARANTEES:
- A job with a living wage
- Freedom from unfair competition and monopolies
- Homeownership
- Medical care
- Education
- Recreation
FORTUNATELY, this all failed, but unfortunately he was able to push a lot of his agenda through in other ways. Here are some evils that still exist today because of FDR:
- Social Security
- Minimum Wage
- Modern Liberal Emotionalism (OK, I admit, that’s a stretch but I am sure he helped fuel it quite a bit)
- …help me add to the list, whenever I get past those three my blind rage prevents me from researching further
…and there is SO much more that I abhor about FDR. Just look up the “New Deal” sometime… Talk about a perfect way of prolonging the great depression.
I am going to change the layout of this site so if you see anything weird going on, that’s why.
I just realized that my registration form stopped working months ago and I probably missed out on hundreds of thousands of new members because of it. I am going to blame my host because they tend to change my PHP settings without informing me first.
The new way to register is to leave a reply on the register page. Please include a brief summary about yourself and your philosophical views. Also let me know if you have any websites/blogs of yours that you would like me to have a look at. Registration, of course, is free.
Benefits of being a member:
- Free
- 90% of this blog has protected posts. If you want to read these posts then you must register
- You get an avatar (graphic beside your comment) and no longer have to have the default BORG avatar next to your comments
- Quarterly e-mail updates
- Access to the “Member’s Only” RSS feed
- A feeling of being uber-l33t
Please note that I do not approve all memberships. I approve people based on a number of personal preferences, which I will not reveal here. Once you are approved you will receive a username and password and access to the entire site.
There is a propaganda program in my state that enrages me:
Debunkify.com (link coded so Google can not use it to boost their rank)
They use all of the same old government studies as “proof” that second hand smoke is harmful. I wouldn’t mind them spreading lies if they didn’t use government coercion to do so.
Thoughts?
*EDIT: It has come to light (by a rude commenter) that this program is allegedly funded by a civil suit, not tax money. This does not change the fact that this program is idiotic propaganda. This does not change the fact that tobacco companies are being unjustly wounded by misinformed causes. This does not change the fact that nobody in their target demographic gives a damn about what Debunkify is saying. Every time I show this site to one of my friends (smoker or non smoker), they laugh. Debunkify is so out of touch with reality. Also, if you are curious about my stance on second-hand smoke studies, please watch Bullshit!*
What’s new in your life? I am just curious because my life has become extremely busy and I assume the same has happened to most of my members since we are all at a similar point in our lives. My business takes up 90% of my day (as it should) and I am spending the rest of my time having fun with my girlfriend in FRIDGID Ohio.
So, chat among yourselves, catch up with each other because I am going to try to generate some more topics for this blog soon and I want everyone to wake up and get ready.
p.s. This feed just rocks: 
I have been adding new stories/links to it daily to keep everyone informed and entertained.
