"Heretics versus Infidels (posted 08/14/06 ):

"According to Jim Pinkerton... Here's the distinction: An infidel is someone who never believed what you believe; an infidel is a stranger, and so there's not much point in investing emotions in him. But a heretic is someone you know well, someone who once believed what you believe, but now has a different faith -- that's much more threatening.

For many years, I’ve been pointing out that the entire mass of the earth, from the upper limits of its atmosphere 4,000 miles straight down to its core, consists of nothing but solidly packed chemical elements. There is not one cubic centimeter anywhere in the earth’s mass that is not some chemical element or other, or some combination of chemical elements.

On pages 74-75 of The Passion of Ayn Rand’s Critics (“PARC”) James Valliant discusses Rand’s breaks with Henry Holzer and Allan Blumenthal as related by Barbara Branden in The Passion of Ayn Rand (“PAR”).

For anyone who thinks Barbara Branden's speech about "Objectivist Rage" is a bizarre combination of skepticism concerning the moral status of suicide bombers and psychological moralizing abo

According to Kofi Annan, Israeli and Lebanese leaders have agreed to begin a “cessation of hostilities” at 8 a.m. (1 a.m. EDT) Monday. Accompanying this "cessation of hostilities" will be a 15,000 troop force of U.N. Peacekeepers. Presumably, they will be there to "keep the peace." Presumably, they will be successful in doing so. Presumably, they will deal with violators of the ceasfire with "all necessary means."

Diana,

You're cute as a button in that new picture.  Much much better than the old one.  I could just eat you alive!  *pinch* 

--Dan Edge

(Subtitle borrowed from Matt Groening, Graduate School Is Hell.)

A passage in OPAR that has become rather notorious reads as follows:

There are men other than criminals or dictators to whom it is moral to lie.  For example, lying is necessary and proper in certain cases to protect one’s privacy from snoopers. (p. 276)

SOLO needs a self-motivated, reliable, and internet savvy individual to join the team as a website promoter.

The position is extremely important to enhancing SOLO’s web presence. As a part of the team, the website promoter will play an integral role in advancing SOLO’s long and short term goals. The position requires only a minimal time commitment, regular internet access, and a willingness/ability to complete assigned tasks within set deadlines.

In light of the recent fiasco revolving around log-in issues, I wanted to ensure that we appropriately address the problem so as to avoid any confusion in the future.

It seems that some people have problems logging in to SOLO from time to time. I’m not sure if this is a problem related to the site’s design or if it is related to the internet browsers individual members are using.

Following the discussions regarding my "banning", I ought to clarify what has happened.

Yesterday, I had an exchange of views with Linz. He had previously written that he thought that I should not post on SoloPassion and that I should move to Rebirth of Reason or Objectivist Living. In response to another post, Linz called me an "evil bastard" in the heading.

Subsequent to my policy statement on banning, I received a private message from a poster who didn't know what "KASS" means, asking for clarification.

[Note—I'm restickying this article from several months ago in light of a crazy debate I've been referred to at RoR right now sparked by "Jeremy LeRay" aka "Orion Reasoner" aka Galt-knows-who-else, who is claiming he was booted from here in contravention of our banning policy. He was not.

I am an Ophthalmologist. I trained for 13 years to be one. It was not easy time then, its not easy time now, but I love my work and would not have it any other way. If I wanted easy I could have been a quality control clerk in a cheese factory. I see 400 people every month and for the majority I either ease their pain, help them develop sight (kids are fun), make them see again or stop them going blind.

The Ayn Rand Institute

U.S. Muslim Group Should Apologize
August 11, 2006

Irvine, CA—Following news of the foiled plot to bomb airlines, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) criticized President Bush for calling the would-be killers "Islamic fascists."

Wall Street Journal has a piece on the Mises Institute and its quiet achievements, and what the hell it's doing in Alabama of all places. As the author himself says, "Growing up next door in Georgia, I never thought of Alabama as a beacon of intellect." Who would? However:

Wow! I'm not a big listener myself of audio books, but I know many people who love them. If so then Learn Out Loud have a deal for you: a free download of Ayn Rand's early novella Anthem, their free audiobook for August.

This afternoon I received an email from Kenneth Irvine (aka Kenny), who informs me that he has been banned from this site.

According to Mr. irvine, this action was taken without any warning, either from Mr. Perigo or Mr. Gagnon.  He simply discovered that he couldn't log on any more.

While browsing the website for the recently concluded Ayn Rand Institute summer conference, I came across a most interesting lecture.  Here is part of the abstract:

The most precise record of Antarctic snowfall ever generated shows there has been no real increase in precipitation over the southernmost continent in the past half-century, even though most computer models assessing global climate change call for an increase in Antarctic precipitation as atmospheric temperatures rise.

TIA Daily -- August 10, 2006 -- Five Minutes to Midnight

This sample issue of TIA Daily is a special update on the war in Lebanon and its implications for an American confrontation with Iran. Please consider subscribing to TIA Daily, which will offer more suggestions for intellectual activism and keep you informed about new developments in this conflict as it unfolds.—RWT

Outsiders like myself have to treat the Ayn Rand Institute like a black box.  We know a certain amount of what goes in, and a certain amount of what comes out.  We can apply whatever we’ve learned about human nature and organizational dynamics, and that’s all.

In a free market, science originates in the minds of individual scientists, who have studied and thought about problems that interest them and who from time to time arrive at new insights, which they develop further and verify. In the course of their work and in the dissemination of its results, they often need more funds than they can personally provide. In such cases, inspired by the value they see in their work, they attempt to obtain the necessary funds from those other individuals whom they can persuade to share their understanding of their work and its value.

Google CEO Eric Schmidt told the Search Engine Strategies industry conference members that government intrusion, not private accidental disclosure of personal information, pose the greatest threat to web privacy. "The more interesting question is not an accidental error but something where a government, not just the US Government but maybe a non-US government would try to get in (Google's computer systems)," Mr Schmidt said.

Physicist James A. Van Allen, a leader in space exploration who discovered the radiation belts surrounding the Earth that now bear his name, died Wednesday. He was 91.

I saw the link to Barbara Branden's presentation on the subject in a RoR discussion. There are points where I think I'd disagree -- namely with characterizations of particular individuals or their arguments where names are named -- though many of the general points look good, even though I didn't find them highly surprising or original; I've seen the kind of advice offered here presented in various forms by various people from different "factions" over the years, including Peikoff's much-lauded Understanding Objectivism. If you can, just for a moment, ignore the fact of who it is that's presenting (and associated issues as to whether the presenter follows the presenter's own advice or not, or has some agenda behind the words), and I'd like to see some commentary on whether the overall points are pretty good or not.

Earlier today, I posted some comments and an announcement about Scott Powell's new "Remote History Program" for homeschoolers. Since I just received this press release, I thought I should make it a thread of its own. And once again, I cannot recommend highly enough Scott Powell's "First History for Adults." I'm really enjoying it, mostly because I'm actually learning the essentials of history for the first time ever.

These are the top dozen most popular posts at the minute over at my main blog, 'Not PC':

Frank Lloyd Wright: Broadacre City
"Urban sprawl is one of the greatest enemies of good urban design," say some. I don't agree. Lack of choice created by a lack of freedom is the greatest enemy -- 'sprawl' gives people choices... Frank Lloyd Wright's 1932 concept of the 'Broadacre City' -- while somewhat nebulous, and by no means a libertarian vision -- demonstrates that sprawl is not the enemy.

Does anyone know where I can find a copy of David Kelley's article "A Question of Sanction"?  The only electronic link to that article that I could find pointed to Wetheliving.com, which no longer exists.  So obviously, this link is broken:  http://wetheliving.com/boston/sanction.html

I met Terry Goodkind for the first time in Las Vegas recently. I attended a book signing, a "meet & greet" and a private party.

The book signing was the only one he will do for his new book _Phantom_. About 300 people attended. They were mostly hardcore fans. I met the hardest core of the hardest core who call themselves "fantards." They were called this in internet flame wars and adopted it as an act of defiance. Terry spends some time talking to each person when he signs a book. He doesn't rush people through. So this took a long time, but was worthwhile for his fans. I had a nice conversation with him. In fact I had to cut it off myself because it was late and we were holding up the line.

I am currently compiling information about pro-Israel and pro-Islamofacist protests in the NYC area.  I would like to organize a group to attend some of these functions and rally support for war against Lebanon, Syria, and Iran.  Anyone interested please respond to this post or email me through SOLO.