Paradise Lost **potential mini spoiler if you intend to read Atlas Shrugged**

[pjclarke]

The other approach is to find some interesting ideas, as there are in Marx, Engels and many other political philosophers. But dogmatic belief in the ideas, and in particular the view that you know an objective truth that others reject is folly.

Sure is. Unfortunately for us, libertarian New Right are in the ascendent, the economic argument lost, they remain inexplicable successful politically.

[pjclarke]

This guy argues fiercely as if he understands what he's talking about, but...

He doesn't understand what morality is - he just blindly asserts that something is or isn't virtuous as if morality is nothing more than convention, subject to whatever is in vogue at the time.

He doesn't understand what selfishness or greed is. He mistakes selflessness for selfishness, and mistakes selfishness for greed.

He mistakes collective conformity for individual rationality.

He mistakes egoism for egotism, obligation for love, and consensus for reality.

He mistakes the avoidance of death, for living.

He mistakes appeals to authority for reasoned debate.


You can't make him see his mistakes, because to think like a man, rather than to go with the flow like an animal, is a choice only he can make. The best that you can do is to highlight his ignorance for others to learn from.

Blah blah. Whatever. More evidence-free assertions; responses slavishly copied from the High Priestess herself. 'How to deal with Unbelievers'. I guess she never got round to writing 'How not to sound like a condescending asshole'.

Do let us know when your little personality cult makes the intellectual bigtime.

[pjclarke]

He is stuck in some archaic view of the world, where appeals to authority actually mean something - must be a takeaway from the AGW doomsday cult.

A cult that has published tens of thousands of studies. I'd be grateful if you could point out any errors of science, fact or logic in my posts....