The HBL Loyalty Oath
I have created this list for those who are deeply and sincerely interested in Ayn Rand's philosophy of Objectivism and its application to cultural-political issues.
It is understood that Objectivism is limited to the philosophic principles expounded by Ayn Rand in the writings published during her lifetime plus those articles by other authors that she published in her own periodicals (e.g., The Objectivist) or included in her anthologies. Applications, implications, developments, and extensions of Objectivism--though they are to be encouraged and will be discussed on my list--are not, even if entirely valid, part of Objectivism. (Objectivism does not exhaust the field of rational philosophic identifications.)
I do not make full agreement with Objectivism a condition of joining my list. However, I do exclude anyone who is sanctioning or supporting the enemies of Ayn Rand and Objectivism. "Enemies" include: "libertarians," moral agnostics or "tolerationists," anarchists, and those whom Ayn Rand condemned morally or who have written books or articles attacking Ayn Rand. I do not wish to publicize the myriad of anti-Objectivist individuals and organizations by giving names, so if you have questions about any such, email me privately and I will be glad to discuss it with you.
If you bristle at the very idea of a "loyalty oath" and declaring certain ideological movements and individuals as "enemies," then my list is probably not for you. To join my list while concealing your sanction or support of these enemies, would be to commit a fraud. Again, if you have any questions on this policy, please let me know
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
The Binswanger Loyalty Oath
A commenter on this thread reminds us of ARIan Harry Binswanger's odd requirement for joining his email list:
It's a paid email list, so I can understand Binswanger not wanting to turn it into a free for all, but his claim that you don't have to be in complete agreement with Objectivism is hard to square with:
ReplyDelete_______
However, I do exclude anyone who is sanctioning or supporting the enemies of Ayn Rand and Objectivism. "Enemies" include: "libertarians," moral agnostics or "tolerationists," anarchists, and those whom Ayn Rand condemned morally or who have written books or articles attacking Ayn Rand.
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If you agree with everything Rand said, but thought she was a bit too harsh on Kant, I assume this would be supporting someone Rand denounced.
Of The enemies that he includes, most of them are actually rather close to the Objectivist position or Objectivists who were purged in previous infighting. "tolerationists" and "moral agnostics" are just Michael Kelley's followers. "libertarians" were sort of preemptively purged, and anarchists are everywhere hated.
ReplyDeleteI guess the part I'm not getting is why someone would sign a loyalty oath in order to pay to read an email list.
Maybe I'm going senile in my old age.
Anarchists "are actually rather close to the Objectivist position"?
ReplyDeleteAre you serious? Emma Goldman? Alexander Berkman? Bakunin? Kropotkin? All these noted socialists have nothing in common with Rand. They stood for genuine liberty rather than Rand's defence of capitalist hierarchy.
Iain
An Anarchist FAQ