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"Ayn Rand wrote that hatred of the good for being the good was evil. I would add that hatred of the good for not being perfect is not too far off."

—Doug Bandler, 'Rand and the Indians' thread

[Mr. Tracinski is sending his TIA Daily out for free at the moment. I'd highly recommend subscribing—Linz]

TIA Daily • July 4, 2010

compiled by Robert Tracinski

Editor's Note: At the Jefferson Area Tea Party's Independence Day celebration in Charlottesville, Virginia, we were favored by a surprise visit from our most famous local celebrity, the Sage of Monticello, Thomas Jefferson. Mr. Jefferson came to read the Declaration of Independence to our audience, but after he was done, our emcee, radio talk show host Joe Thomas, asked the third president if he could favor us with his views on today's Tea Party movement. Here is what Mr. Jefferson said.—RWT

This quality, honor, is what Objectivists, mired in Narcissism, and mistaking Narcissism for rational egoism, lack. For want of this quality, Objectivism is going nowhere. It's why conservatism is beating Objectivism's ass, still! Lack of honor is why we can have no Band of Brothers, no Three Musketeers ... only futile attempts to herd cats:

[You'll have seen excerpts from this many times—parts of it are oft-quoted. Here it is in its entirety. Read it and weep for the America that was—Linz]

Thomas Jefferson Speech - First Inaugural Address
Wednesday, March 4, 1801

Friends and fellow-citizens,

The Catholic Church has spent two millennia demonizing human sexuality to a degree unmatched by any other institution, declaring the most basic, healthy, mature, and consensual behaviors taboo.

"Ironically, the United States is moving in the direction of the kind of economy that China has been forced to move away from.

Britain's Foreign Office issued a public apology on Saturday after an official document suggested the Pope should open an abortion clinic and bless a gay marriage during his visit later this year.

Ayn Rand was a unique individual, generations ahead of her time. In the person of Nathaniel Branden, she had sensed the possibility of achieving the complete visibility she had yearned for, something even the husband she loved for over fifty years could not fully give her. This hope, buoyed by Rand's exalted sense of life and concept of romance, is what Branden profoundly undermined in Rand by his prolonged, calculated, and terrible deceit. The full measure of the suffering he caused her can only be guessed.

As we have observed, Branden’s fraud was not merely a romantic one. He had been Rand’s business partner, and Rand’s endorsement literally kept him employed. This was the job of teaching Rand’s philosophy, including her ethics and such subjects as the virtue of honesty. He had become a role-model and a hero for many of Rand’s numerous followers. Rand was by no means Branden’s only victim.

In Judgment Day, Mr. Branden tells us that he made certain predictions about what Rand would do following their break. He foresaw Rand holding endless discussions of his psychology. And, Branden boasts, his predictions were “precisely what happened.”

"A few weeks ago, The New York Times ran an editorial noting the amazing fact that, by the middle of this year, there will be an estimated 6.8 billion people on Earth -- and 5 billion will have cell phones! ... How did that happen without a Democrat president and Congress using bribes, parliamentary tricks and arcane non-voting maneuvers to pass a massive, hugely expensive National Cell Phone Reform Act?

Rand has been deeply hurt by the charge of being "moralistic." Again, it is Rand's self-esteem that sees through this rationalization at once.

Objectivism certainly rejects “rationalism,” as in the classical sense of the term, i.e., the philosophical approach of men like Descartes and Leibnitz. But Objectivists also use this term to mean something else, an approach not necessarily tied to the content of one’s philosophy but to one’s normal cognitive method, i.e., how one thinks.

One of Objectivism’s great insights is its recognition of the comprehensive power of philosophy over human affairs.

Objectivism, the philosophy Rand articulated in her books, is the first philosophy in history which can actually be practiced consistently on earth.

O'Connor almost certainly believed that his wife was an exceptional genius and a woman intensely loyal to her values.

Despite her closeness to the O'Connors, Ms. Branden cannot name a single member of Rand's large circle of associates, a single friend, a fellow arts student of O'Connor's or a single resident of the apartment building which she shared with the O'Connors who can report ever seeing O'Connor intoxicated. Not one.

From Dr. Bachler's Global Warming Thread:

Liars, cheats, thieves: the terrible truth about the mean greens

The right-on brigade has been unmasked. About time too, says Iain Hollingshead

"Honor, justice, and humanity, forbid us tamely to surrender that freedom which we received from our gallant ancestors, and which our innocent posterity have a right to receive from us.

"It does not take a majority to prevail... but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men."

Valliant's summation concluding Chapter IV:

The Brandens were dishonest with Rand about nearly everything a person can be dishonest about, largely in order to maintain the good thing they had going at NBI. This dishonesty lasted for years.

Chapter IV—The Exploiters and the Exploited

Recall that at this time Branden is married to Ms. Branden, having an affair with Rand which is known to both their spouses, and having an affair with a third woman which both he and Ms. Branden are concealing from Rand.

Rand saw the error of moral relativism—and the moral cowardice that it implies.

I'm obliged to Neil Parille for his post claiming it was James Valliant in PARC who first made a big deal of the type-writer story.

Private Messages function is dysfunctional at the moment. Normal service will resume asap.

News that Sheikh Mohammed Khalid is being brought to the United States for trial is bad news for a nation already traumatized by years of having Sheikh Mohammed Khampblah on the prowl. Will this tip Americans over the edge? Will they be able even to tell the pair apart?

Routine security update is scheduled for Friday morning 8 am EDT / Saturday 1 am NZDT. Should be down for no more then 15 minutes. Users may experience error messages, page not founds, redness, swelling and other withdrawal symptoms. We'll have it back up as soon as we can.

UPDATE - due to a glitch, I'm rescheduling the maintenance to Wednesday, Aug 12 (Tuesday, US & GMT) at the same times. Carry on.

Life is too short to compromise time and resources...