The Republican Party has suffered one of its biggest election losses in history. Its fair to say that a great many people will be looking for a re-think on values. It is fair to say that these people were betrayed by the Republican Party. Its fair to say that the Republican Party has lost a lot of these people to the Democrats, not because of the values conveyed, buy because of the better leadership by Barrack Obama.
There are of course signs that the Republican Party is recognising its error, and that have taken steps to rediscover what the party represents. I would suggest the Liberal Party in Australia has to take the same steps since John Howard did as much to betray the history of the Liberal Party as George Bush did to his party legacy. But its not about these men, its a philosophy that was betrayed long ago, and it has generally got worse. The US is stronger because there was a time when it explicitly recognised its core values. That has been lost, so I want to ask people to listen to this convention to appreciate what values made the USA great. See this presentation to the Virginia Republican Party at ARC-TV.
This speech received a standing ovation. It was interesting however that the audience seemed to agree on all the issues presented except two. They did not applause on two issues:
1. A separation of Church and State: The reason why the separation of Church and State is important is because they are incompatible. The philosophy of the religion is to renounce personal values, the role of government is to protect your personal value. The philosophy of religion is to have faith; but the government's role is primarily to protect your rights, which demands attention to evidence, the facts of reality, and the principles of justice. based on rational discourse. Faith is a repudiation of evidence; it demands that you obey, accept God without evidence. For this reason religion is compatible with the coercive state; not capitalism.
2. The virtue of making money: The speaker could have framed this better, or elucidated upon the point. Basically he is not preaching love of material things. He is saying that there is no conflict between one's spiritual or philosophical values and one's material objectives, goals or wants. He is saying that one's primary responsibility and concern is for oneself. I would also add that it is only through self-love that one can truly love overs. Money is really only the monetary unit underpinning the acquisition of goods. What he didn't explain was the importance of self-esteem, efficacy in one's career, the importance of a long range purpose. This was a shame, because in the context of the current political climate, where you have CEOs getting huge salaries for stuffing up companies, and suggesting a desire to reduce regulation; people will just not embrace that idea.
Apart from failing to address those points it was a very good speech. It also highlights a shift I feel in the Ayn Rand Institute to speak in less technical jargon that people can understand.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com
There are of course signs that the Republican Party is recognising its error, and that have taken steps to rediscover what the party represents. I would suggest the Liberal Party in Australia has to take the same steps since John Howard did as much to betray the history of the Liberal Party as George Bush did to his party legacy. But its not about these men, its a philosophy that was betrayed long ago, and it has generally got worse. The US is stronger because there was a time when it explicitly recognised its core values. That has been lost, so I want to ask people to listen to this convention to appreciate what values made the USA great. See this presentation to the Virginia Republican Party at ARC-TV.
This speech received a standing ovation. It was interesting however that the audience seemed to agree on all the issues presented except two. They did not applause on two issues:
1. A separation of Church and State: The reason why the separation of Church and State is important is because they are incompatible. The philosophy of the religion is to renounce personal values, the role of government is to protect your personal value. The philosophy of religion is to have faith; but the government's role is primarily to protect your rights, which demands attention to evidence, the facts of reality, and the principles of justice. based on rational discourse. Faith is a repudiation of evidence; it demands that you obey, accept God without evidence. For this reason religion is compatible with the coercive state; not capitalism.
2. The virtue of making money: The speaker could have framed this better, or elucidated upon the point. Basically he is not preaching love of material things. He is saying that there is no conflict between one's spiritual or philosophical values and one's material objectives, goals or wants. He is saying that one's primary responsibility and concern is for oneself. I would also add that it is only through self-love that one can truly love overs. Money is really only the monetary unit underpinning the acquisition of goods. What he didn't explain was the importance of self-esteem, efficacy in one's career, the importance of a long range purpose. This was a shame, because in the context of the current political climate, where you have CEOs getting huge salaries for stuffing up companies, and suggesting a desire to reduce regulation; people will just not embrace that idea.
Apart from failing to address those points it was a very good speech. It also highlights a shift I feel in the Ayn Rand Institute to speak in less technical jargon that people can understand.
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Andrew Sheldon www.sheldonthinks.com
