There is a local (Philadelphia) weather anchor on Fox local news that has come out on his Fox blogpage as a global warming skeptic. , and the local weekly newspaper/commie rag has come out against him.

After some consideration combined with a first-hand experience, I'd like to formally denounce Peikoff's call to vote "Dem," (the "fatwa.") Ironically, Peikoff's own arguments elsewhere played a major part in my decision. Without throwing my unbridled support behind the Republicans or ignoring the religious implications of their power, I'd like to present my argument into the fray. It's long, but I promise there is a point.

"Hell is for martyrs,
and Heaven's for fools,
but Earth is the place where we make our own rules."
-me

As Aaron noted in his review, "300 presents heroes without doubt or apology.

"Calling all citizens from all over the world/
This is Captain America calling/
I bailed you out when you were down on your knees/
So would you catch me now I'm falling."
-The Kinks

Ok, so I quoted the wrong song (This instead of the Kink's (Wish I could Fly Like) Superman. But the song remains the same, only the name has changed.

(This essay is based on "The Incredible Revolution" orignally published at SOLOHQ.com. Reposted in consideration of the new movie SUPERMAN RETURNS.)

Although creator Brad Bird denies any direct influence, THE INCREDIBLES is an evolutionary step towards an Objectivist view of superheroes, but there is a vestigial tale of a mixed premise of altruism, and that altruism is inherent in the classical idea of heroism itself. The hero's journey often requires a sacrifice, and this sacrifice is usually interpreted as a renunciation of the ego to engage with something larger than themselves, i.e. God, the greater good, the collective unconscious.

Star the Hater, aka Troi Torain, has proven that Objectivism's enemies are not from without, but from within. Torain, who spouts his own version of Objectivism called "Objective Hate," was recently arrested over these on-air remarks:

“Yes I disrespected your seed." “If you didn’t hear me, I said, I would like to do an R. Kelly on your seed, on your baby girl. I would like to tinkle on her....Where does this kid go to school? I got 500 bucks for that information.” And, “I will come for your kids. I finally got the information on [DJ Envy’s] slant-eyed whore wife.”

Ayn Rand was a promoter of the Romantic Realism school of literature, but stories such as ANTHEM and ATLAS SHRUGGED contain bits of science fiction and fantasy, genres she both defended as ideally related to Romanticism. Her influence has made its way into STAR TREK, SPIDERMAN, and the works of Terry Goodkind. Her idea of romanticism is well suited to a genre identified with the perennial question “what if?”.

In the "Bootleg Romanticism" chapter of THE ROMANTIC MANIFESTO, Ayn Rand writes:
"The composite picture of man that emerges from the art of our time is the gigantic figure of an aborted embryo whose limbs suggest a vaguely anthropoid shape, who twists his upper extremity in a frantic quest for a light that cannot penetrate its empty sockets, who emits inarticulate sounds resembling snarls and moans, who crawls through a bloody muck, red froth dripping from his jaws, and struggles to throw the froth at his own non-existant face, who pauses periodically and, lifting the stumps of his arms, screams in abysmal terror at the universe at large."

Well known is the story of Ayn Rand's appearance on Donahue, as told by Barbara Branden. The story is used as evidence of Rand's intolerance and dogmatic insistence on agreement. Anyone who has actually seen the footage knows that this story is a lie.

On the "other forum," there's an interesting rebuttal of the book THE RISE OF THE CREATIVE CLASS, which is a call for government to spend more money attracting so called creative artists to rejunivate cities. As was pointed out by others, the author replaces cause and effect by government planning. I wrote,

Philadelphia is going through something of a renovation, and areas like South Street, famous for it's bohemian stylings, is slowly giving way to Starbucks and the like. Of course, all the dirty hippies complain about the area losing its charm, and such. But when that charm is manifest as punk rock shops and various holes in walls, you won't see me complaining.