Family vs Moral Philosophy?

Recently, an interesting contention was put to me: Objectivism is at odds with family.

Huh?

This statement was made by someone who clearly does not understand what Objectivism is. In essence, Objectivism is a philosophy of reason. Among other things, it answers the question: "How do you know what you know?" This important question applies especially to the moral question: "What is right
and wrong?"

As a moral philosophy, what could be more important to a family, where individuals are living together in close quarters, where rational cooperation is paramount, especially when you hold the context of living together for years if not decades?

Adult siblings naturally tend to go their separate ways, raising their own families. Being one of 12 children, I've found it easier to get along with my brothers and sisters because Objectivism has helped me be crystal clear about my values. Specifically, it's now much easier for me not to lose sight of the good in my brothers and sisters when I hear them express disagreement with me on certain ideas.

Many know the stereotypical tension that arises when families get together for the holidays. The TV show Frasier (one of my favorites!) once had an episode on this. One of the lines (if I recall it correctly) went like this:

Caller: I hate seeing my family during Thanksgiving.
Frasier: And your point is what?

And that was the point--that it's so common to feel that way.

Not me. I look forward to catching up with my brothers and sisters. Our boundaries are clear, well-defined. That done we talk about what we all value—e.g., child-rearing, staying healthy and fit, career, homes, good food, music, the historic 2004 Red Sox victory over the Yankees (true story!), etc.

So, I'm still puzzled by the contention mentioned at the start of this post. I'll follow-up if I get more context from its source. I received it second hand. In the meantime, these are my initial thoughts.

Madison on Factions

While continuing to read Madison at my slow pace, I took a moment to browse the net for some references to him. That effort showed me this gem of a site. It shows a considerable amount of the material I've found in the book I'm reading, published by the Library of America. The site layout is clear and easy to follow.

The particular passage I was hoping to find was there. You can see the entire dialogue here. The excerpts I found most interesting follow.

Speaking of the logic supporting a national government, Madison said:

he combined with [that logic] the necessity of providing more effectually for the security of private rights, and the steady dispensation of Justice. Interferences with these were evils which had more perhaps than any thing else, produced [the Constitutional] convention. Was it to be supposed that republican liberty could long exist under the abuses of it practised in some of the States.

Madison agreed with a contention that in a very small state "faction & oppression would prevail". He noted how civilized societies are

divided into different Sects, Factions, & interests, as they happened to consist of rich & poor, debtors & creditors, the landed, the manufacturing, the commercial interests, the inhabitants of this district or that district, the followers of this political leader or that political leader, the disciples of this religious Sect or that religious Sect.

This led him to an important question:

In all cases where a majority are united by a common interest or passion, the rights of the minority are in danger. What motives are to restrain them?

What indeed?

A prudent regard to the maxim that honesty is the best policy is found by experience to be as little regarded by bodies of men as by individuals. Respect for character is always diminished in proportion to the number among whom the blame or praise is to be divided. Conscience, the only remaining tie, is known to be inadequate in individuals: In large numbers, little is to be expected from it. Besides, Religion itself may become a motive to persecution & oppression.

In the following excerpt, I admire how history is brought to bear on the significance of the decisions to be made in the present of his day.

These observations are verified by the Histories of every Country antient & modern. In Greece & Rome the rich & poor, the creditors & debtors, as well as the patricians & plebians alternately oppressed each other with equal unmercifulness. What a source of oppression was the relation between the parent cities of Rome, Athens & Carthage, & their respective provinces: the former possessing the power, & the latter being sufficiently distinguished to be separate objects of it? Why was America so justly apprehensive of Parliamentary injustice? Because G. Britain had a separate interest real or supposed, & if her authority had been admitted, could have pursued that interest at our expence. We have seen the mere distinction of colour made in the most enlightened period of time, a ground of the most oppressive dominion ever exercised by man over man.

This passage gave me pause to reflect on a future era's Madison looking at the sweep of history, picking up where Madison left off, armed to the teeth with the intellectual ammunition afforded him by Ayn Rand's powerful ideas. Madison continues:

What has been the source of those unjust laws complained of among ourselves? Has it not been the real or supposed interest of the major number? Debtors have defrauded their creditors. The landed interest has borne hard on the mercantile interest. The Holders of one species of property have thrown a disproportion of taxes on the holders of another species. The lesson we are to draw from the whole is that where a majority are united by a common sentiment, and have an opportunity, the rights of the minor party become insecure. In a Republican Govt. the Majority if united have always an opportunity.

Madison's conclusion:

The only remedy is to enlarge the sphere, & thereby divide the community into so great a number of interests & parties, that in the 1st. place a majority will not be likely at the same moment to have a common interest separate from that of the whole or of the minority; and in the 2d. place, that in case they shd. have such an interest, they may not be apt to unite in the pursuit of it. It was incumbent on us then to try this remedy, and with that view to frame a republican system on such a scale & in such a form as will controul all the evils wch. have been experienced.

I marvel at not only the calibre of Madison's effort but the nature of the audience he had to be addressing to share this passionate focus on protecting everyone's rights. What an era!

Bee-zarre

It's past 1:00 AM and I can't sleep. So, I cruise the net for something to make me laugh. Lo and behold, I find this site. It had me in stitches, the closest I've been to fall-down-roll-on-the-floor laughter in ages.

If you check it out, give the web page time to download all the pics. And be sure to read the verbiage for each pic in sequence.

Enjoy.

Ouray, CO

In one of my first blog posts, I mentioned Ouray, CO. Well, they've posted a new picture of their town, the Switzerland of America. Check it out.

I look forward to visiting Ouray in 2007.

Tiny Toni

Here's a pic of tiny Toni, Neil's and Barb's daughter, on one of her first adventures. This particular adventure was to visit Santa. Click her pic to see it full size.

Reno Balloon Race 2006

I just came across this cool video. Check it out. It's a time-lapse video of a 2006 balloon race in Reno. I like the idea of spending a day drinking in this kind of spectacle.

Groove Junkies

A few days ago, I stumbled across a group named Groove Junkies. I've found their music perfect for my workouts. I especially like this song—"Just Groovin' (Main Room Madness Mix)". It takes an effort for me to stop when this song is playing.

"Oh Lord 2006 (Brooklyn View Instrumental)" is cool too but it suits my warm-up and stretching period better.

I continue to love that when I learn about music like this I just have to open iTunes, drop in a buck a song and push it into my iPod in seconds.

God bless capitalism!

New Year's Resolutions

The Ayn Rand Institute has posted a good article on
New Year's Resolutions. I like it. It talks about the importance of taking charge of your life, taking charge of your happiness. It scorns passivity.

In short, get up off your ass and live. Set a goal and go for it. Show that you take your happiness seriously.

Carpe diem!

Follow the values

"Whatever it is, follow your heart." That's the way I greeted a friend who phoned me recently. I hadn't heard from him for a long time. Having guessed correctly what was on his mind, he laughed. That put him at ease and set the tone for the conversation.

Yes, it was about a romantic interest. And, yes, it's a private matter I won't discuss here, of course. However, what I will discuss is a general idea, especially one that crystalized for me during the conversation.

The general idea is this: "Follow your heart" is not really good advice. Neither is "follow your head". Both can get you into trouble. Following your heart, it's too easy to lapse into emotionalism. For example, a man who pursues a woman who has made it clear she is not interested in his advances. He ignores that pesky restraining order and keeps marching to his own emotionalist tune. Um, no. No means no, dude. Let it go.

Follow your head, then? Not really. That policy can be just as prone to errors. For example, a man who should pursue a woman who is interested but he ends up rationalizing away why he ought to make the effort in this case.

Both policies commit the same basic error—failing to look at reality. In particular, look at the values you hold and she holds. I don't mean what you say you value or what she says she values. I mean what you both actually value, what you both do on a regular basis.

Now, what would be a good example of this? Say you both say you like kids. In the course of dating, you see, if you're paying attention, that what she means by that and what you mean by it are two different things. She means she likes kids like an aunt likes her sister's kids and that's it. In contrast, you want to start a family. That's no small difference. That's a key value difference. That's a reality you must address on some level, e.g., discuss it with her, work it out or part ways. Whatever; just don't try to ignore it and assume everything will workout somehow. Blanking out is a bad policy.

What is a good policy? Follow the values. This formulation plays off the two common policies mentioned above and it plays off a now common expression known as "follow the money". What I like about this last is that it points your attention to some key aspect of reality that links to a larger picture. That's how I'm using "follow the values"—i.e., look at what your romantic interest does across time; give more weight to her actions than to her words. Think about that and tie it to broader picture that is the whole person you see.

What would be an example of this policy in action? Say I'm interested in dating a woman whose politics is significantly different from mine, which would be pretty much 99.9% of the women on the planet, be they left, center, right or whatever. How do I follow the values in this case? Well, I start with the fact that I'm less interested in a woman's political conclusions and more in how she reached them.

Is she a parrot, repeating things she has heard from others, not giving them any serious independent thought? Red flag. Is she very independent, reaching her conclusions through her own process of thought? Impressive. Far more important than the ideas you hold is how you hold them. In this case, the how reveals an active mind, a very attractive quality in my book.

Of course, if you're discussing politics a lot in your romantic relationship, and it's not even your profession, something is wrong. Are you having fun!? For example, do you go on trips together, go out dancing, go to musical performances together, trekking through woods and around lakes together, etc.? If you are, then you are not just following the values, you're wonderfully immersed in them. Enjoy!

Christmas Tree Cams

Check out http://www.earthcam.com/events/christmastree/. This site shows a nice collection of Christmas tree lights from around the globe.

Look for the Hall of Fame tab for some nice images. I like the shots around the Grand Hotel Praha in Prague.

Merry Christmas!

Knee

I had x-rays taken of my left knee today. An odd, temporary pain kicks in at times. When it does, I'm forced to hobble along, trying to keep weight off my knee. After a few minutes, if I bend at the knees and get the left one to pop (very loudly), then I'm fine. I can jump up and down on it as if nothing was ever wrong.

Strange.

My doctor suspects that I likely injured it during a hike, where it's not uncommon for me to slip on a loose patch of rocks, even when I'm using my hiking poles.

For now, he prescribed an anti-inflammatory drug to see if that helps my knee heal. If it doesn't, then I'll need to see a specialist. Ugh.

What a glorious feeling!

One of my favorite movies was on tonight—Singing In The Rain. I couldn't watch the whole thing but I stayed up late enough to catch Gene Kelly's classic dancing-in-the-rain scene while he belts out the title song. I found the lyrics (below) at this site. I can't recommend this movie enough. It's upbeat, pure fun. See it and enjoy.


Singin' in the rain
Just singin' in the rain.
What a glorious feelin'.
I'm happy again.
I'm laughin' at clouds
So dark up above.
The sun's in my heart
And I'm ready for love.
Let the stormy clouds chase
Everyone from the place.
Come on with the rain.
I've a smile on my face.
I'll walk down the lane
With a happy refrain,
And singin', just singin' in the rain.

Jolie on Atlas Shrugged Movie

Angelina Jolie gives an update on the Atlas Shrugged movie project here.

Why I am an Objectivist

Recently, a friend asked me this: "Why are you an Objectivist?" It seemed a puzzle to her because I'm very independent in my views, which means, at times, that I must go my own way alone. Ironically, that's the answer to the question, or part of it anyway.

Let's back up a little. What is an Objectivist? It's someone who ascribes to the philosophy of reason identified by Ayn Rand, which she called Objectivism. For more details, scan the web. You'll find over a million hits. The best place to start is http://www.aynrand.org/.

In layman's terms, what does Objectivism mean to me? It helps me to understand myself, the world and my relationship to it. In particular, it helps me to see clearly the difference between right and wrong...by a rational, objective standard. It helps me to see and appreciate the good that moves the world daily. Personally, it helped me to see a good woman, the one who asked me the question, for what she was and is and not let her slip away from my heart.

In short, Objectivism gave me the intellectual and spiritual tools to work and fight for my happiness. I'm not out to save the world with Objectivism. I'm out just to save my world, my slice of it. If more people had that perspective, the world would fix itself pretty damn fast.

I'm not speaking theoretically. I'm speaking from experience, 26 years to be exact. That's how long I've been familiar with Miss Rand's ideas. Her ideas helped me rise from financial and spiritual poverty to the wealth in both I enjoy today.

Years ago, when Miss Rand's ideas were still new to me, when they were still theory, I was impressed by this passage in Atlas Shrugged. It's an excerpt of John Galt talking to Dagny Taggart:

If you fail, as men have failed in their quest for a vision that should have been possible, yet has remained forever beyond their reach—if, like them, you come to think that one's highest values are not to be attained and one's greatest vision is not to be made real—don't damn this earth, as they did, don't damn existence. You have seen the Atlantis they were seeking, it is here, it exists—but one must enter it naked and alone, with no rags from the falsehoods of centuries, with the purest clarity of mind—not an innocent heart, but that which is much rarer: an intransigent mind—as one's only possession and key. You will not enter it until you learn that you do not need to convince or to conquer the world. When you learn it,you will see that through all the years of your struggle, nothing had barred you from Atlantis and there were no chains to hold you, except the chains you were willing to wear.

"Rags from the falsehoods of centuries" surround us. I've learned to see them and stop being afraid of them. In the clear light of day and reason, they're like cheap Halloween masks, not very scary. But punching through the facade takes what Miss Rand talks about—an intransigent mind. Such a mind is not the monopoly of the smartest person in the world. It can be owned by any spirit that chooses to think for itself. And owning that gives you your key to Atlantis, spiritually at least, which is where it all begins.

Why am I an Objectivist? Because I enjoy being happy and look forward to earning more happiness in the years to come.

Sleeping Giant Mountain

Another fair weather Saturday in New England inspired me to visit Sleeping Giant Park. It was colder than my visit last week to Talcott Mountain but worth getting bundled up to enjoy the otherwise excellent weather.

Click this image to expand it. Notice the dad pushing his kid up the trail in a stroller. This is a common sight on the trail. This is why I call it a "stroller trail". I admire the moms and dads who get their exercise this way.

Here are two views from an "orange" trail, which means an intermediate level of difficulty. Through the leafless branches, you can see part of Quinnipiac College. Off in the distance is New Haven, Connecticut.

Here are two views of the trail approaching the mountain top tower. An advantage of hiking on a cold day is that I tend to have the place all to myself. I enjoy the short-lived fantasy of being lord of the manor. :^)

A shot from inside the tower on the second level. Cozy.

Some shots from the top of the tower. It's more fun in the summer when you can loll about while munching on some food and drinking in the vistas.

Couple more shots from the tower.

View of the tower from a wider angle, clear of the trees.

This is a path off the "blue" trail (the most demanding trail type). That path ends abruptly with a sheer drop. Gotta be careful here!

Here you can see the blue patch that reminds hikers what kind of trail they're on. The cliffs also serve as reminders. The view is worth the cautious effort.

Some shots of the quarry on my way back to the parking lot. Of course, it's no longer used now that the property is a public park. It's striking to see this open area where there used to be a mountain slope.

In this age of enviromentalism, I've got to add: good for man! In any conflict between man and nature, man comes first.

Talcott Mountain

This is the sight you see at the crest of the steep hill at the start of the tower trail leading up to Talcott Mountain. Today's weather was a late fall classic for New England—sunny, crisp, clean, and brisk. So it was time to head for the hills, literally.



This picture is a view of the valley from the trail on the way to the tower. Though I knew shooting the picture a little into the sun is not generally a good idea, I allowed it in this case. Click the picture to see it full size. Notice the water in many places. That's the result of torrential downpours last night.

I don't know the father and son pictured here. I snapped the pic because it was such an idylic moment. Also, this trail is popular. So it's hard to take a picture without somebody popping in.

Here is the Heublein Tower. It sets off the beautiful blue sky nicely.

Here's the little, sun-washed park area leading up to the pavillion.

Here is my little haven up close. When the weather is mild and when few people are around, this is where I love to go to read...e.g., biographies of Adams and Jefferson, 19th century history, 21st century aesthetics (thanks again, Barry!)

More shots of the pavilion from different angles.

Another view of the Hueblein Tower. I don't know how to get to that paved road yet. It'd be nice to drive up to the tower at times instead of hiking up the trail.

My last shot of the day from the front porch of the tower. I marvel at this fact—Mr Heublein and his family lived here once and this was their daily view of the world.

Weight Management

For the first time in my 52 years, I'm on a diet. And it's working. I've gone from tipping the scales at nearly 180 pounds down to about 165. I'm shooting for about 155. That's the target I worked out with my nutritionist. It's age and size appropriate for me as well as reasonably paced—that is, not losing too much too fast.

Why now? Lots of reasons. The particular trigger was my doctor telling me my triglycerides were too high. What does that mean? Apparently triglycerides are associated with a higher risk of heart disease. Go here for a good summary.

Ok, I'm motivated!

So, my diet went from (basically) lots of meat & potatoes, fruits, frozen dinners and sweets to no sweets, no frozen dinners, plenty of veges, some fruit, fish (particularly salmon), rice, Cherrios (apparently low sugar) and mid-morning and mid-afternoon snacks (e.g., cheese and crackers).

Technically, cutting out alcohol was supposed to help but I drink very little anyway—e.g., one beer and I'm done. So, that suggestion was already in place.

The snacks were a surprise to me. Since college, I disciplined myself to eat no more than 3 times per day. So, now I'm eating smaller portions 5 times a day. Again, to my surprise, it's working!

As part of this, I'm also working out, more regularly than ever before. My usual pattern is to be up at 4:30 AM to give myself at least 30 minutes to wake up since I don't drink coffee. Then, I'm off to the gym to warm-up, stretch, get an aerobic and anaerobic workout, cool down, and stretch some more.

My goal is not to be skinny but to build strength and stamina. That's easier when I don't have to carry around too much bulk on my small frame. And the purpose of those physical attributes is to support my higher value—a clear, sharp mind. That value is easier to maintain when my body is fit and healthy.

Mind-body harmony—it's a good thing.