Ayn Rand and the Super Bowl

[Dennis Hardin]

It is Super Bowl week-end, and, obsessive Ayn Rand fanatic that I am, I got to wondering: what did Ayn Rand think about football?

Not much. That seems clear. Based on this excerpt from the play, Ideal—one of the admiring fan letters sent to actress Kay Gonda—she apparently associated football with boredom and conventionality:

Dear Ms. Gonda,

This letter is addressed to you, but I am writing it to myself.

I am writing and thinking that I am speaking to a woman who is the only justification for the existence of this earth, and who has the courage to want to be. A woman who does not assume a glory of greatness for a few hours, then return to the children-dinner-friends-football-and-God reality. A woman who seeks that glory in her every minute and her every step. A woman in whom life is not a curse, nor a bargain, but a hymn.

I want nothing except to know that such a woman exists. So I have written this, even though you may not bother to read it, or reading it, may not understand. I do not know what you are. I am writing to what you could have been.

Johnnie Dawes

On the other hand, Laury McGee--the bright, young hero of her short story, Good Copy (written around 1927)—was a “star quarterback” of a championship team in college. Evidently her view of football dimmed somewhat in the years between 1927 and 1939. In Think Twice, she describes the character “Flash Kozinsky” as follows: "Flash does not carry a college pennant, but ‘football hero’ is written all over him as plainly as if he did. He is young, husky, pleasant-looking and not too bright…”

[All of these references are from The Early Ayn Rand.]

Like a lot of people who don’t know much about football, she most likely thought it was a sport for dumb, overgrown roughnecks who didn’t waste a lot of time thinking. She was wrong, of course. The more you know about football, the more you realize that it is every bit as challenging on the cerebral level as it is brutally savage on the physical level. You simply cannot be a football hero if you are “not too bright.” The plays are amazingly complex, and each player has to know his assignments or the team has no chance of winning. And the quarterback often has the option of changing the play—“calling an audible”--in a split-second. In addition, every player must be acutely aware of everything that is happening around him--reading clues and anticipating and reacting--every second that the play is alive.

You cannot watch quarterbacks like Peyton Manning or Tom Brady or coaches like Bill Belichick and Rex Ryan and not be aware of the overwhelming complexity of what it takes to win in the NFL (or on the major college level). Some of it is luck, obviously, but, more often than not, thinking and planning and preparation make all the diiference. I suspect that’s why the sport has grown so much in popularity in recent decades. It combines the mental and the physical—body and mind--in a spectacle of human excellence that is unmatched by any other sport.

Oh yeah. The Super Bowl. Packers win, 27-17.

[Selene]

Immediate Intervention Required for Dennis Harden!!

Geez...some people!

Lol. What's up Dennis, too proud to post on the thread that I dedicated to you?

Adam

[Dennis Hardin]

Immediate Intervention Required for Dennis Harden!!

Geez...some people!

Lol. What's up Dennis, too proud to post on the thread that I dedicated to you?

Adam

Adam,

I'm speechless. I was totally unaware of this other thread.

No one seems to have mentioned that the Colts lost because their "brilliant" coach, Jim Caldwell, called a time out with 29 seconds left that enabled Folk to kick a 32 yard field goal instead of a much more difficult 50 yarder. Folk would very likely have missed the longer attempt. I'm not sure Manning has much chance of ever making it back to the Super Bowl with that idiot calling the shots. He had pulled the same bonehead maneuver in an earlier game against the Jaguars, with the same result.

I could have used the intervention. Rehab sucks. And they restrict your computer access.

BTW, the next time you dedicate a thread to me, could you kindly spell my name correctly? Thanks much.

[Selene]

Immediate Intervention Required for Dennis Harden!!

Geez...some people!

Lol. What's up Dennis, too proud to post on the thread that I dedicated to you?

Adam

Adam,

I'm speechless. I was totally unaware of this other thread.

No one seems to have mentioned that the Colts lost because their "brilliant" coach, Jim Caldwell, called a time out with 29 seconds left that enabled Folk to kick a 32 yard field goal instead of a much more difficult 50 yarder. Folk would very likely have missed the longer attempt. I'm not sure Manning has much chance of ever making it back to the Super Bowl with that idiot calling the shots. He had pulled the same bonehead maneuver in an earlier game against the Jaguars, with the same result.

I could have used the intervention. Rehab sucks. And they restrict your computer access.

BTW, the next time you dedicate a thread to me, could you kindly spell my name correctly? Thanks much.

Wow! My apology.

Good thing I did not spell it with an "o"!

Adam

juvenile sniggerer

Edited February 6, 2011 by Selene

[Dennis Hardin]

Immediate Intervention Required for Dennis Harden!!

Geez...some people!

Lol. What's up Dennis, too proud to post on the thread that I dedicated to you?

Adam

Adam,

I'm speechless. I was totally unaware of this other thread.

No one seems to have mentioned that the Colts lost because their "brilliant" coach, Jim Caldwell, called a time out with 29 seconds left that enabled Folk to kick a 32 yard field goal instead of a much more difficult 50 yarder. Folk would very likely have missed the longer attempt. I'm not sure Manning has much chance of ever making it back to the Super Bowl with that idiot calling the shots. He had pulled the same bonehead maneuver in an earlier game against the Jaguars, with the same result.

I could have used the intervention. Rehab sucks. And they restrict your computer access.

BTW, the next time you dedicate a thread to me, could you kindly spell my name correctly? Thanks much.

Wow! My apology.

Good thing I did not spell it with an "o"!

Adam

juvenile sniggerer

My girlfriends often make that mistake. Can't imagine why.

[Selene]

Immediate Intervention Required for Dennis Harden!!

Geez...some people!

Lol. What's up Dennis, too proud to post on the thread that I dedicated to you?

Adam

Adam,

I'm speechless. I was totally unaware of this other thread.

No one seems to have mentioned that the Colts lost because their "brilliant" coach, Jim Caldwell, called a time out with 29 seconds left that enabled Folk to kick a 32 yard field goal instead of a much more difficult 50 yarder. Folk would very likely have missed the longer attempt. I'm not sure Manning has much chance of ever making it back to the Super Bowl with that idiot calling the shots. He had pulled the same bonehead maneuver in an earlier game against the Jaguars, with the same result.

I could have used the intervention. Rehab sucks. And they restrict your computer access.

BTW, the next time you dedicate a thread to me, could you kindly spell my name correctly? Thanks much.

Wow! My apology.

Good thing I did not spell it with an "o"!

Adam

juvenile sniggerer

My girlfriends often make that mistake. Can't imagine why.

You should stop dating Junior High School girls then!

[Roger Bissell]

I never could figure out why Ayn Rand, whose favorite hobby was collecting postage stamps (of all things), couldn't see the pro-life aspect of sports such as football and basketball. I mean, aren't those the clearest concretization we have in our culture of goal-directed activity?

REB

[Selene]

I never could figure out why Ayn Rand, whose favorite hobby was collecting postage stamps (of all things), couldn't see the pro-life aspect of sports such as football and basketball. I mean, aren't those the clearest concretization we have in our culture of goal-directed activity?

REB

REB:

Of course. It's OK though. I forgave her, but I am not to sure about Phil.

So what is your pick Roger?

Packers are 2 1/2 point favorites and the over under is 45 1/2.

Adam

[Dennis Hardin]

BTW, the next time you dedicate a thread to me, could you kindly spell my name correctly? Thanks much.

Wow! My apology.

Good thing I did not spell it with an "o"!

Adam

juvenile sniggerer

My girlfriends often make that mistake. Can't imagine why.

You should stop dating Junior High School girls then!

I can't help it. They just keep begging me to sleep with them. It's a curse.

[Dennis Hardin]

I never could figure out why Ayn Rand, whose favorite hobby was collecting postage stamps (of all things), couldn't see the pro-life aspect of sports such as football and basketball. I mean, aren't those the clearest concretization we have in our culture of goal-directed activity?

REB

Roger,

Football looks like a brutal sport, and I can certainly see why some people might see it as barbaric. They could totally miss the cerebral aspect of it. Many women look at football and have no earthly idea what the hell is going on. You would think that might suggest to them that the men playing the game are not muscle-headed morons. On the other hand, baseball and basketball really are much more civilized. Unfortunately, they are also unbearably boring (to me, at least, by comparison).

I would never compare basketball and football. Basketball is almost entirely a sport of purely physical skills, whereas football is a blend of the cerebral and the physical—a game of chess where the bishops, rooks, knights and pawns are full-grown men going at each other full tilt. But the winner is usually the team with the most brain-power at coach and quarterback.

[Roger Bissell]

I never could figure out why Ayn Rand, whose favorite hobby was collecting postage stamps (of all things), couldn't see the pro-life aspect of sports such as football and basketball. I mean, aren't those the clearest concretization we have in our culture of goal-directed activity?

REB

REB:

Of course. It's OK though. I forgave her, but I am not to sure about Phil.

So what is your pick Roger?

Packers are 2 1/2 point favorites and the over under is 45 1/2.

Adam

Adam, I'm for Pittsburgh, for sentimental/genealogical reasons, nothing else. I haven't been wild about the Packers since the early 1960s. Nor football in general since the 1980s. But my son-in-law will be glued to the TV all afternoon/evening, while the rest of us will be having a family dinner and winter birthday celebration, so I'm sure he will be "broadcasting" lots of data, both play-by-play and "color commentary." :-)

REB

[Roger Bissell]

I never could figure out why Ayn Rand, whose favorite hobby was collecting postage stamps (of all things), couldn't see the pro-life aspect of sports such as football and basketball. I mean, aren't those the clearest concretization we have in our culture of goal-directed activity?

REB

Roger,

Football looks like a brutal sport, and I can certainly see why some people might see it as barbaric. They could totally miss the cerebral aspect of it. Many women look at football and have no earthly idea what the hell is going on. You would think that might suggest to them that the men playing the game are not muscle-headed morons. On the other hand, baseball and basketball really are much more civilized. Unfortunately, they are also unbearably boring (to me, at least, by comparison).

I would never compare basketball and football. Basketball is almost entirely a sport of purely physical skills, whereas football is a blend of the cerebral and the physical—a game of chess where the bishops, rooks, knights and pawns are full-grown men going at each other full tilt. But the winner is usually the team with the most brain-power at coach and quarterback.

In general, I agree with you about the complexity of football and its mental aspect. But basketball requires very quick mental response, not just physical prowess. Probably I like it because it feels kind of like what I do when I'm doing jazz improvisation, which is an exhilerating blend of physical prowess and quick mental adaptation to an unfolding musical process.

Also, I agree with you that baseball is boring. Excruciatingly so, to me. I loved it as a kid, back in the 50s, when I also loved golf (on TV), which I also now experience as grindingly boring. But ~basketball~? Love the game, always have. Gets my blood going, as long as the camera shots are not too distant from the play.

Billiards -- now, ~there's~ a sport I ~really~ love! And bowling. Both of which I suck at, but could spend hours doing. :-)

REB

[Michael Stuart Kelly]

I think Ayn Rand probably sucked at sports.

Being a good selfish person, she thus gave sports a low level of importance in her system of philosophy for living on earth.

(Not meant as Rand-bash, but as objective fact and plausible explanation. In the bios, she was very bitter as a girl at having to walk a long distance once. That could have soured her on the celebration of physical endurance.)

Personally, I think sports rock. But I pretty much suck at them myself.

Michael

[caroljane]

I never could figure out why Ayn Rand, whose favorite hobby was collecting postage stamps (of all things), couldn't see the pro-life aspect of sports such as football and basketball. I mean, aren't those the clearest concretization we have in our culture of goal-directed activity?

REB

REB:

Of course. It's OK though. I forgave her, but I am not to sure about Phil.

So what is your pick Roger?

Packers are 2 1/2 point favorites and the over under is 45 1/2.

Adam

Adam, just from curiosity, are your friends going to forcibly detach you from your computer while the game is on?

[Selene]

I never could figure out why Ayn Rand, whose favorite hobby was collecting postage stamps (of all things), couldn't see the pro-life aspect of sports such as football and basketball. I mean, aren't those the clearest concretization we have in our culture of goal-directed activity?

REB

REB:

Of course. It's OK though. I forgave her, but I am not to sure about Phil.

So what is your pick Roger?

Packers are 2 1/2 point favorites and the over under is 45 1/2.

Adam

Adam, just from curiosity, are your friends going to forcibly detach you from your computer while the game is on?

Carol:

I actually, for the Super Bowl, chart the game, play by play, the computer is in the adjacent room, so during time outs, etc. will "jump on the computer"...lol.

Adam

[Selene]

I never could figure out why Ayn Rand, whose favorite hobby was collecting postage stamps (of all things), couldn't see the pro-life aspect of sports such as football and basketball. I mean, aren't those the clearest concretization we have in our culture of goal-directed activity?

REB

Roger,

Football looks like a brutal sport, and I can certainly see why some people might see it as barbaric. They could totally miss the cerebral aspect of it. Many women look at football and have no earthly idea what the hell is going on. You would think that might suggest to them that the men playing the game are not muscle-headed morons. On the other hand, baseball and basketball really are much more civilized. Unfortunately, they are also unbearably boring (to me, at least, by comparison).

I would never compare basketball and football. Basketball is almost entirely a sport of purely physical skills, whereas football is a blend of the cerebral and the physical—a game of chess where the bishops, rooks, knights and pawns are full-grown men going at each other full tilt. But the winner is usually the team with the most brain-power at coach and quarterback.

In general, I agree with you about the complexity of football and its mental aspect. But basketball requires very quick mental response, not just physical prowess. Probably I like it because it feels kind of like what I do when I'm doing jazz improvisation, which is an exhilerating blend of physical prowess and quick mental adaptation to an unfolding musical process.

Also, I agree with you that baseball is boring. Excruciatingly so, to me. I loved it as a kid, back in the 50s, when I also loved golf (on TV), which I also now experience as grindingly boring. But ~basketball~? Love the game, always have. Gets my blood going, as long as the camera shots are not too distant from the play.

Billiards -- now, ~there's~ a sport I ~really~ love! And bowling. Both of which I suck at, but could spend hours doing. :-)

REB

REB:

Basketball is underrated. One of the reasons is that the current "pro game" does not seem to have the draw that it used to have. I could be wrong here because the NY teams have become non competitive and that has diminished my interest.

The college game is as good as ever though.

I had seasons tickets to the NY Knicks from 1969 through to 1974 and saw both championships. The famous Willis Reed 7th game was incredible. Frazier had 35 pts, 19 assists, 10 or 12 rebounds and at least 7 steals.

Those teams were some of the smartest teams ever assembled. Rhodes scholar Bill Bradley. Jerry Lucas PHD in math I believe. He and Bradley would call out baseline picks in Greek. Hilarious.

Adam

[Selene]

This is the commercial that will probably win this years best Super Bowl commercial.

It is a fascinating example of how the internet is dominating the way we learn and communicate.

Over 12, 000, 000 people have seen this "commercial" via YouTube which may be more than see it when it airs on the Super Bowl tonight.

Secondly, it is flat out brilliantly clever. There is not a single word spoken, nor a single word printed until the very end.

Some of the most creative work in media is being done in the ad departments in marketing firms all over the world.

This lady has written a new book called: Alone Together: Why we expect more from technology and less from each other.

http://www.amazon.com/Alone-Together-ebook/dp/B004DL0KW0/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1296936250&sr=8-2-fkmr0

I heard her interviewed last night and she makes some excellent points.

Adam

[Selene]

Folks:

This is her page today for watching the Super Bowl on line.

http://www.komando.com/coolsites/index.aspx?id=8147&utm_medium=nl&utm_source=csotd&utm_content=2011-02-06-article&utm_campaign=end'>http://www.komando.com/coolsites/index.aspx?id=8147&utm_medium=nl&utm_source=csotd&utm_content=2011-02-06-article&utm_campaign=end

www.nfl.com

This is from Kim Komando who has a really nice daily computer e-mailing on technology and useful links to computer info. She also has a radio daily show.

And no, even though she is an attractive woman, I cannot answer the question as to whether she dresses like her last name.

This is her website which has lots of useful info and links.

http://www.komando.com/

Adam

Post Script: Carol this would be a great site for you in reference to computers, etc.

[Dennis Hardin]

The reading of the Declaration of Independence on the Super Bowl pregame show by present and former players and coaches of the NFL—Drew Brees, Donovan McNabb, Joe Gibbs, Bart Starr, Charles Woodson, Donald Driver, Jim Plunkett, Hines Ward, Art Donovan, Anthony Munoz,DeMarcus Ware, Jerry Rice, et. al.--was pretty fantastic.

I realize that Colin Powell and Roger Goodell and all the readers probably have a pretty limited grasp of what the word “freedom” means, but I still loved it. It makes me believe that people have some sense of what makes America great--the American sense of life.

Now if we could just translate that sense of life into a mature philosophy for living on earth. . .

[Jerry Biggers]

Indeed!

I can now share a secret that was revealed to me by agents from Jesse Ventura's team on his Conspiracy! TV show, who penetrated ARIan Security measures and examined tablets hidden deep in its Archives!...You know that legendary NBI softball game between the Attilas and the Witchdoctors, held over 50 years ago? Well, actually, it was not softball, it was football! And the real source of Leonard's animosity toward Nathan was that, as quarterback for the Attilas, Leonard bungled the pass from Murray (that Murray!) which was intercepted by Nathan who, evading Bill (that Bill, explaining the source of another grudge!), made the touchdown, winning the game!

It had to be said. The world is perishing from an orgy of baseball worshiping.

But now, back to the subject of this thread. I am perplexed....Doesn't everyone know about what a highly intellectual, goal-directed, life-affirming example of psycho-epistemological prowess in action that football really is?...Why, of course, they do!

Everyone one knows that the most intellectually inclined students gravitate to football in school. And after the player's minds are sharpened through learning all those mind-expanding game move strategies, they are ready for the college recruiting agents. And the first thing that they look for in their recruitment searches are the students with the highest gradepoint averages and the highest S.A.T. scores. As everyone knows, it is the jocks who are the highest academic achievers. Especially the members of the high school football teams.

And in college, only the best and brightest minds become prime candidates for the professional football recruiters. And those 7 figure salaries? Well, that's what is needed to pry them away from those post-graduate scholarships offered to them in the hard sciences such as physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, or their applications in engineering, architecture, and medicine.

Many of the best candidates for pro football have to face dilemmas like: "Should I take up the challenge of quantum mechanics and particle physics at CERN,...OR, should I go where I can use my mind to the fullest, like a career in pro football?" Well, everybody knows that the brightest intellects choose careers in contact sports like football. That's where one really learns to use the full capacity of one's mind.

No point in reading kidstuff like Aristotle, Plato, Spinoza, Kant, or even Rand (-they're such lightweights). Instead, go for the real thinkers from the football greats, such as John Madden's "Hey, everybody! I Wrote A Book!" (which, of course, is really a thinly-disguised rewrite Rand's Introduction To Objectivist Epistemology). Or, Joe Namath's (remember him?) I Can't Wait Until Tomorrow, Because I Get Better Looking Everyday! (a restatement of Rand's The Virtue of Selfishness).

Edited February 7, 2011 by Jerry Biggers

[Dennis Hardin]

I wonder: Does it really make a person feel superior to write “clever” posts that insult people who don’t share your interests? What a silly, pointless waste of time.

It was a great Super Bowl. Pittsburgh came very close to mounting one of the best comebacks ever after being down 21 to 3. The only disappointment was that Fergie didn’t have a wardrobe malfunction at halftime. Could she have worn a skirt that was any shorter? (I’m not complaining.) Aaron Rodgers definitely earned his MVP honors. So much for experience as an advantage in the Super Bowl.

My favorite commercial was the guy and girl on a date. She's got a zillion questions going through her head: "Does he make lots of money? Will he be a good husband? Does he want kids?" Etc. Etc. All he's thinking is: "Will she sleep with me? Will she sleep wth me? Will she sleep with me?" Hysterical. The runner-up was House M.D. doing a Mean Joe Greene imitation. Has it really been 30 years since he tossed the kid that towel? Man, I am getting old.

[Michael Stuart Kelly]

I lost the enthusiasm for American football during my 32 years in Brazil.

But since I have returned, I have made it a point to watch the Super Bowl.

I thoroughly enjoyed it today.

The underdog in me was hoping for the Steelers to pull it off, but there were too many interceptions.

Still, it was a relatively clean game sportsmanship-wise. (there were a couple of mild fare-ups only.) I remember some real nasty games in the past. Ironically, this time around, clean and all, there was an inordinate number of injuries.

Outside of the game, I loved the Declaration of Independence part. I didn't love whats-her-face botching the National Anthem. Nor was I too crazy about the part she got right.

I intensely disliked the half-time show with the robotic Black-Eyed Peas. I think it is the weakest I have ever seen, but some of the lighting effects and choreography were cool.

And, there is a part to sports on TV people rarely comment about, but I actually like the commentary.

Michael

[Brant Gaede]

Billiards -- now, ~there's~ a sport I ~really~ love! And bowling. Both of which I suck at, but could spend hours doing. :-)

REB

I believe you mean various pocket pool games like one-pocket and nine ball.

Steve Mizerack once offfered me the seven ball in nine ball. I declined.

Toby Sweet used to be a friend of mine.

I once watched the two of them go at it for hours for $100 a game. They broke even.

--Brant

[Jerry Biggers]

I wonder: Does it really make a person feel superior to write “clever” posts that insult people who don’t share your interests? What a silly, pointless waste of time.

It was a great Super Bowl. Pittsburgh came very close to mounting one of the best comebacks ever after being down 21 to 3. The only disappointment was that Fergie didn’t have a wardrobe malfunction at halftime. Could she have worn a skirt that was any shorter? (I’m not complaining.) Aaron Rodgers definitely earned his MVP honors. So much for experience as an advantage in the Super Bowl.

My favorite commercial was the guy and girl on a date. She's got a zillion questions going through her head: "Does he make lots of money? Will he be a good husband? Does he want kids?" Etc. Etc. All he's thinking is: "Will she sleep with me? Will she sleep wth me? Will she sleep with me?" Hysterical. The runner-up was House M.D. doing a Mean Joe Greene imitation. Has it really been 30 years since he tossed the kid that towel? Man, I am getting old.

Certainly not. We should all write serious posts that advance ideas and positions that carefully avoid anything that could be misconstrued. We should certainly not write anything that would cause other posters to examine the premises (whoever came up with that idea, anyway?!) of any positions (especially those that they may regard as untouchable "sacred idols") that they have taken in their own posts. We certainly should not even make the slightest implication that such preferences might have led them out onto thin ice.

No, this is never done on this forum.

And when someone attempts to use satire or hyperbole on these "untouchable" subjects, we should respond by psychologizing that that poster must have done it out of a sense of superiority and/or silliness (I mean, what other explanations could there be?).

Sacred idols are sacred idols (a proposition that has greatly benefitted mankind).

So, to avoid any misunderstandings in the future, posters should first check to make sure that any attempts at humor do not exceed the examples laid out in OPAR.

Edited February 7, 2011 by Jerry Biggers

[Dennis Hardin]

I wonder: Does it really make a person feel superior to write “clever” posts that insult people who don’t share your interests? What a silly, pointless waste of time.

Certainly not. We should all write serious posts that advance ideas and positions that carefully avoid anything that could be misconstrued. We should certainly not write anything that would cause other posters to examine the premises (whoever came up with that idea, anyway?!) of any positions (especially those that they may regard as untouchable "sacred idols") that they have taken in their own posts. We certainly should not even make the slightest implication that such preferences might have led them out onto thin ice.

No, this is never done on this forum.

And when someone attempts to use satire or hyperbole on these "untouchable" subjects, we should respond by psychologizing that that poster must have done it out of a sense of superiority and/or silliness (I mean, what other explanations could there be?).

Sacred idols are sacred idols (a proposition that has greatly benefitted mankind).

So, to avoid any misunderstandings in the future, posters should first check to make sure that any attempts at humor do not exceed the examples laid out in OPAR.

Well, Harry, since you were the literary spawn of Graham Greene, a master of social satire, I should have known better than to take anything you said seriously. All those smiley faces should have been my clue.

Incidentally, I liked you better when you got reincarnated as Michael Rennie.