Objectivist Roundup

Have you noticed, the summer is almost over? The regular TV season is about to start, the TV producers begging us to pity the protagonist, sacrifice ourselves for those in greater need, condemn those who produce, celebrate the ones that speak for the people. Our kids are going back to school and bring back ideas such as, "If you don't take care of the earth, the earth will die!  It's the truth!" (an idea my three-year-old holds onto for dear life.) And the guilt associated with recognizing one's own selfishness: "Mommy, I am a little selfish... Isn't that a bad thing?" (Brought to you by a thoughtful five-year-old Alex.) In-between all of that, we manage to hold on to reason, teach our kids to set goals and achieve their dreams, collaborate with others, finding the virtue, which makes human cooperation possible in each person we encounter - and when the day is over and we slump in exhaustion on the couch, we are often surprised to find that there is much good in the arts as well: someone will take the heroic place of Jack Bower, the never-ending search for the truth continues on House, and evil continues being ultimately impotent on Criminal Minds.  So relax, grab a glass of wine, and enjoy this edition of the Objectivist Roundup!


Edward Cline presents Hillary Clinton Auditions for Lady Macbeth posted at The Rule of Reason, saying, "Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, a woman scorned, first by her husband former President Bill, who favored swishier skirts and less nagging, and then by the Democrat machine in favor of a nobody from nowhere during the 2008 election, finds every little opportunity to vent her wrath on her own country."
Mike Zemack presents Education Tax Credits: Taking the Political Offensive posted at Principled Perspectives, saying, "85-90% of America’s K-12 education is government-run. Can a complete separation of education and state be achieved through incremental free market reforms directed over time at the heart of that institution? Or, are such efforts doomed by the intermediate threat of statist inroads into the private school sector, leaving the public school sector essentially off limits to major political challenge unless and until the ideal of free market education can be achieved in a single sweeping transformation?"
Edward Cline presents The Light That Must Not Fail posted at The Rule of Reason, saying, "Not even the most ardent anti-jihadist would portray Muslims in the frank and objective terms that Winston Churchill did. He did not flinch from the evidence of his eyes. He did not search for some “saving grace” in Islam or in a Muslim that would forego a blanket condemnation of Islam"
C.W. presents Self-Fulfilling Fantasies: US Treasury Bonds posted at Krazy Economy, saying, "US Treasury Bonds were downgraded, so what happened? Their price went up. You ask, "Why? How does this make sense?" Context. It is understandable, but revealing, and not good."
Diana Hsieh presents Ancestral Health Symposium: My Experience posted at NoodleFood, saying, "Here's my report on my fabulous experience at the "Ancestral Health Symposium.""
Kate Yoak presents On Social Security posted at Parenting is..., saying, "We were talking about social security. Despite the myth, there is no easy way to get out of paying the tax. Alex (5) walked in at the end of the discussion and here is the story of what I told him and what he learned."
Ari Armstrong presents New Harry Potter Essay on Religion posted at Free Colorado, saying, "Are the Harry Potter novels fundamentally Christian works? Here I counter claims that they are."
Jason Stotts presents Pornography posted at Erosophia, saying, "Pornography is good for you, but it can also create unrealistic expectations."
Santiago and Kelly Valenzuela presents Tell President Obama: Stop Separating Our Families! posted at Mother of Exiles, saying, "A US citizen and AIDS patient may see his spouse and caregiver deported later this month. Please sign this petition and tell our government to stop this atrocious rights violation!"
Rational Jenn presents Morgan's Things I Want to Do and Learn List posted at Rational Jenn, saying, "It's the time of year when I'm making homeschool plans with my kids. This post is the list my six-year-old daughter came up with. I think such a list is a great way to help her stay on track with the pursuit of her values, and it helps me know how I can help her, too."
C.W. presents FOUR BOOKS: One Great, Two Good, One to Avoid posted at Krazy Economy, saying, "These are brief comments about four books I have recently read (or am currently studying in the case of Dr. Buechner's book). Three are worth reading and are recommended." 

That concludes this edition. (Time to get more wine!) Submit your blog article to the next edition of objectivist round up using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

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On Social Security

      "Would you like me to tell you what we were talking about?" I said to Alex. "Sure!" So I began...


      "One day, you will get old, just like Granny, and you won't be able to have a job any more. Or at least, not a job you would like. Because it'll just be too hard, because you are too old and your health isn't so good." "Right!" he said enthusiastically.
      "So what will you do for food?  Where will you get the money?"  "You would.. No... My ... family, my kids will help me!"
      "Yeah, that's a good thought! Your family would take care of you when you are old! OK, let's suppose, you don't have any kids.  Like our friend Mike. What would you do then?" "Mmm... I don't know..."
     "Well, think about it, if you were to give Mike advice for what to do, what would you say?"
     "Make so much money that there is enough left over!" Alex was quick to come up with a rather reasonable solution.
     "Right, so perhaps a good idea is to put away a little money every month your whole life and then you will have enough that you won't need to worry."  


Ok, so we got the concept of retirement.  Now to the heart of the matter...


      "What about those people who didn't plan ahead? Didn't save any money? Now they can't work and don't have enough to eat.  What would they do?" "Ask neighbors to help?"
      "Yeah, great idea. People do tend to help each other. There are lots of organizations whose business it to help people find help from each other.  They are called charities. But our government has come up with another approach.  Basically, young people save money, just like we talked, but instead of saving it in their own account, they give it to the government.  The government in turn pays it out to the old people. Now when the young people get old, the new young people would be giving money to the government to pay them. So it kind of works, right?" "Yeah! It rolls over and over and over!" Clearly, Alex saw the concept in his mind, and it sounded just as good as it did to the FDR generation.
      "There are a couple of problems with this approach.  First, what happens if there are more old people than young ones?"  "Oh..." "And there is a bigger one. See, you might decide that you can do better at managing your old age money than the government and have more money in the end. So shouldn't you get to decide, you would prefer not to pay the government, but do it on your own instead?"  "Yes, of course! I can do it better, I am sure!" "But then who would put in the money to pay people that are old?" "Well, not everyone would decide to do it on their own!" "Hmm... if you think you can do it better, don't you suppose, most of your friends would too?" "Yeah..." "So all of you would tell the government, you can't control my heart! I am doing it on my own!"  (You can't control my heart is Alex's favorite  expression, which means, he gets to make decisions that concern his own self.) "But the government doesn't have enough money to pay the old people. So they say, 'Yes we can!' And you say, 'No, you can't!' And they say, 'Yes, we can, it's the law!' Doesn't that hurt your feelings?"
        "Yeah... I wish they didn't decide to do that. I wish, they didn't have this law and this program... I wish, I could manage my own money!"


        "And that, my dear child, is what daddy and I were just talking about... It makes us sad that we don't have a choice."  "Can I play on your computer, mom?"


Heh... life clearly goes on! For Alex, and for the rest of us...

Domestic nudity

A conversation recently sprung up. Is public nudity OK? Should it be banned? Is it ok for parents to run around naked with each other? Is it ok to be uncomfortable with public display?

I have happened to pick a path on this issue that disagrees more or less with every camp. Yet, it seems so simple and straightforward, so obvious, natural and easy - it surprises me that I am quite so unique. So here you go.

Point one. Public nudity is impolite. Your behavior in public, generally, is a matter of politeness. You act in accordance with your culture's customs in a way that is considerate of what others will find comfortable, when this is not in conflict with your values. This means, you say hello when you walk into a room, shake hands without immediately pulling a tissue out of your purse Monk-style, cover your mouth when you cough, refrain from taking screaming infants into an evening movie and excuse yourself if you need to answer a phone call. Politeness, however, does not require you to give up things that are important. You do not refrain from breastfeeding your child regardless of the stares, nor are you obligated to stop and pick out an appropriate outfit prior to running out of a burning building. As I tell my children, "We do not go out naked in public, because it is rude. It is only ok if we are certain that the people around us don't mind."

Point two. Casual nudity within the family is natural.  In my childhood home, the custom was the same as in most: same-gender nudity was ok, opposite gender strictly prohibited. The result? My first encounter with a penis was a copy of PlayGirl my friends picked up at a train station in Germany. I was horrified at the deformed-looking hairy appendage. My second? My own boyfriend. While it was slightly better, I tried to avert my eyes. It took me years, a lot of thought and reading, before I could be comfortable seeing that particular portion of male anatomy. My own body? Not much better. I was mortified at the thought of somebody seeing my underpants. An occasion of that sort at the age of twelve caused me become violent toward an classmate.

One's body is not to be ashamed of, not to be hidden for "a special occasion", nor flaunted as it is in a brothel. It should be comfortable and natural with those closest to us. I do not walk around naked at home.  It is not hygienic, too cold and my butt sticks to furniture. I do not, however, try to hide my body from my children, when I am getting dressed or walking out of the shower. What is the only possible message I can send to them if I swiftly cover up my breasts when they walk in on me changing? Shame and embarrassment on my own part, to be reflected on theirs.


We have a boy and a girl, both well-familiar with each other's anatomy, sharing a bath and frequently a bed. They know what is there, what it is for, and there are no questions, which remain. They run around naked when they feel like it, but get dressed unfailingly to greet strangers.


Point three. A law banning public nudity is reasonable, but probably harmful.  As Ayn Rand points out, there is a "need to protect people from being confronted with sights they regard as loathsome." It is probably legitimate to argue that I should not be afraid to come to my front porch and be assaulted with the sight of the neighbor's testicles.  However, such a law is likely to do more harm than good.  People should demand fewer laws and learn to talk to each other more. "Dammed, George, I please put away your treasures!"

Point four. Strong discomfort with the sight of nudity is an indication of a mistake.  I would argue that if you abhor all nudity outside of a sexual connotation, you probably have a mistaken sense of body shame. Why do you dislike it so?  "Because it should be private" isn't a sufficient reason for the visceral "Oh my god!" we tend to experience. This is a reaction of shame and guilt, of recognition that you are party to something that should not be. When you accidentally walk in on somebody changing and spend the rest of the day disturbed, something is off. On the other hand, "I did not want to see that shriveled thing peeking out from under the giant gut, YUCK!" may be a perfectly healthy reaction, akin to "Ewe, dog poop!" But notice that no legislature is required in this case.

This is the key reason for my emphasis on point number two: casual nudity within the family. Body shame is a horrid, vile problem we settle our children with (and most of us inherited from our parents). A good sense of politeness, with the self-confidence and healthy psychology are all that we need to have a healthy society with a proper outlook on nudity.

Am I as alone as I think?  What do you do? Do you disagree with me? Don't be too shy to post a comment.