DallasCowboys

Members
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    138

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Everything posted by DallasCowboys

  1. DallasCowboys
    Quick question, In Atlas Shrugged as you all know Hank is blackmailed into signing away Rearden Metal and later in part three realizes it was not correct for him to give in that it was immoral but, isn't he under the threat of a force, which would make him given in justified, is him signing away the metal justified but he still believes he shouldn't have or is it not justified? Hope that makes sense Thanks, David C.
  2. DallasCowboys
    tony garland- Thanks and I totally agree with you, I certainly not afraid to read books supporting ideas I don't agree with, I had to read Kant and John Dewey for my philosophy class so I know whats it like. I was just looking for books that are similar with her ideology because thats what I am interested in reading at the moment, thanks though your advise is still good! Thanks, David C.
  3. DallasCowboys
    whYNOT- your answer confused me a bit, so it would be just to lie in such a situation? Thanks, David C.
  4. DallasCowboys
    Reidy- to understand someones ideals I have to learn what they believe, If I wanted to learn about communism I would read the communist manifesto. That being said I do read to be entertained but reading something that doesn't support what I believe wouldn't be entertaining. I just wanted to see if there are books that support her ideals about Objectivism because I would find them pleasurable to read. Thank you all for the suggestions, I think I have a lot of reading ahead of me. Thanks, David C.
  5. DallasCowboys
    Ok, so I think I understand a good portion of Objectivism. I am trying my best to get it all to line up but it can at times be difficult. My question here pertains to lying. I completely agree with Rand on the idea that lying is not a good thing because then you are in service to someone else and lying to serve yourself doesn't work either because it would not line up with reason and logic which are absolutes. My question lies in lying to say save someones life: if a man had a gun to my head and said "Dave tell me where your wife is so I can kill her", would Rand say that because it is by forced the lie would be justified? Thanks, David C.
  6. DallasCowboys
    This has become a super interesting thread. I find it amazing to learn where objectivism stands on certain issues such as porn which wasn't as prevalent in Ayn Rands day as it is now; and dldelancey don't feel bad at all, you made some very interesting points. If I understand correctly there is no mind body split in sex which makes sense, this also includes watching porn and masturbation, a problem only arises when there is force involved. dldelancey I find your point about faking a orgasm or lying and saying you don't look fat to be quite interesting. I would say that yes it is immoral because as it says in atlas shrugged "What I’ve learned is that a lie is an act of self-abdication, because one surrenders one’s reality to the person to whom one lies, making that person one’s master, condemning oneself from then on to faking the sort of reality that person’s view requires to be faked…The man who lies to the world, is the world’s slave from then on…There are no white lies, there is only the blackest of destruction, and a white lie is the blackest of all.” My question is does that mean Ayn Rand would say to tell the truth to a murderer if he asked for the location of a family member?
  7. DallasCowboys
    I agree with rational self interest. Because reality is an absolute, and this is where you get reason from, how would you argue porn is for or against self interest. I am just curious how you would make that argument. Thanks Again, David C.
  8. DallasCowboys
    Porn being in supportive of self interest or not being in supportive of it, I agree is debatable. I completely agree with all your other points. The only thing that doesn't add up to me is the doing things purely for your body which you said isn't bad, but if Ayn Rand didn't believe there was a split between the two how can you ever do things purely for the body. I understood that sex was not purely body, what I didn't get was how porn could involve the mind, but as you said which makes sense it could on some level which I am not aware. Thanks, David C.
  9. DallasCowboys
    When I come up with a question on Objectivism this website is super quick to respond so I am sorry if I am seem like I am going posting crazy. My question pertains to pornography and the Objectivist stance on it. For what I gather the idea is to do things out of self interest which watching porn would be, however, watching porn is purely body and doesn't seem to involve the mind though I may be wrong, and Ayn Rand doesn't believe in the split between mind and body, there in lies my question. Thanks, David C.
  10. DallasCowboys
    Thank you both for the feedback, this is exactly what I was looking for!
  11. DallasCowboys
    I am just beginning the third part of Atlas Shrugged and I am sad to see it end. My perspective on life has certainly been changed, and I am so glad I decided to read this book. My question pertains to objectivist novels, are there other novels that preach objectivism not written by Ayn Rand. I never like to read the same author twice in a row and would like the read something in-between Atlas Shrugged and Fountainhead. Thanks, David C.
  12. DallasCowboys
    Thank you all for the feedback, this actually really helped me. I just hit part three of Atlas Shrugged and I can't wait to read it. I actually can't even focus in class because I want to read so much. Just to make sure I understand correctly, Ayn Rand believed reason was an absolute because we gather our reason from reality and reality is an absolute (IE a speck of dust is a speck of dust ), if our reason is wrong it is in fact a contradiction which as Francisco says don't exist, on that note BaalChatzaf your comment was quite amazing.
  13. DallasCowboys
    I am currently in a philosophy class at St. Johns University and we never learn about people such as Ayn Rand, so in trying to learn her myself, I have a question that is troubling me. Does Ayn Rand believe in absolutes, or does she just believes in the absolute of reason. If she does just believe in the absolute of reason why does she write that a speck of dust in an absolute, is it because we learn that it is a speck of dust through reason. This leads me to another quick question, can't reason be wrong at times or flawed, how do we know our reason as a person is right? Thanks, David C.