Neil Parille

We haven't wreaked enough havoc in the Middle East? - Iraq, Libya and now Syria?

What goes on in Syria is none of our business.  It's either Assad or Al Qaeda.

Chris,

If Rand had commented on Kant, Hume and Hegel, I assume these comments would have been included.

As you say, one doesn't get the impression that Rand was well read. In fact, I think it is evident that she wasn't.

-NP

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I wish him many more years, but I've always found him annoying.

-NEIL

I'll say this for Edwards, at least he didn't drag his wife to some public apology like Spitzer and the Sen. from Louisiana did.

But speaking of Mrs. Edwards, she could have told Edwards that she wouldn't take part in his lie and put an end to it.

Talk about power corrupting.

-NEIL

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I think Larson's Summer for the Gods is supposed to be the best book on the subject.

-NEIL

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It has the odd disclaimer that the inclusion of Peikoff's stuff doesn't mean he agrees with everything that is sold.

Chris,

I always enjoyed Book Notes with Brian Lamb every Sunday night. He seemed to have many conservative and libertarian authors, as well as U.S. historians.

I'm watching it now. Anne Heller said that her biography will be out next summer, which is good news.

Since this thread has generated so much interest, I'll start with one:

Daniel Robinson, An Intellectual History of Psychology, which is a fascinating account of the subject as well as a good review of the history of epistemology.

Robert,

That's an excellent point. (BTW, when I said that Peikoff's version tended to support Barbara Branden's account in PAR, that I was referring to Rand being dismissive of the statistical correlation between smoking and cancer.)

Incidentally, if Barbara'a account is correct (and I don't have any reason to doubt it), it's pretty clear that when Peikoff recounts some aspect of Rand's life or personality (that she had a temper), we are entitled to ask what he is omitting.

This argument of Peikoff's strikes me as quite wrongheaded. If a large percentage of people who smoke get lung cancer, then there is good reason to believe that smoking causes cancer. There are a great many drugs whose mechanisms are unknown.

Incidentally, Peikoff's comment tends to confirm what Barbara Branden says in PAR about Rand's smoking.