The Virtue of Selfishness
Why Self-Interest is Not Only Rational But Moral and Ethical
There has been an enormous amount of humbug in various letters, blogs and articles since the Australian election along the lines of how terrible it is that the majority of Australian voters care more about dollars in their pockets rather than the Iraq war, refugees, the environment etc. The writers somehow think they are claiming the moral high ground and the rest of us are a bunch of greedy bastards. Well, that's not the case and those making these claims are either guilty of double standards or, even worse, are morally depraved.
Let's look at these two alternatives. Firstly, there is the question do these people think that the policies they promote are in their own interests? If so, then why are they allowed to act in their own interests and others are not? They may disagree as to the merits of the different policies but to claim a right for oneself and disallow that right to others is morally wrong and nothing more than outright oppression.
The alternative is that these people are not acting in their own interests but rather altruistically and for some "greater good". This is even worse than the first case! Why? Because in this case the act is in effect a negation of life and a vote for death. The logical outcome of such altruism is suicide and death. Why? Because if someone continually sacrifices themselves and does not act to support their own life then death is the inevitable consequence.
This is disgusting and morally depraved. Usually such people have little or no self-esteem, hate themselves and, as a consequence, hate everyone else. Ayn Rand viewed altruism as her worst enemy for this reason.
It's worth reviewing a couple of the fundamental tenets upon which Rand based her philosophy. In essence, these are:
1. Each individual has the right to exist and each life is it's own justification; and
2. Each individual has the right to pursue their own happiness and highest good, without interference from others.
Note that in pursuing their own interest, the individual does not have the right to infringe on others.
This approach is first and foremost "pro-life". Everything that follows (such as the conclusion that free market capitalism is the best, and only moral, system for society) is a consequence of this.
There has been an enormous amount of humbug in various letters, blogs and articles since the Australian election along the lines of how terrible it is that the majority of Australian voters care more about dollars in their pockets rather than the Iraq war, refugees, the environment etc. The writers somehow think they are claiming the moral high ground and the rest of us are a bunch of greedy bastards. Well, that's not the case and those making these claims are either guilty of double standards or, even worse, are morally depraved.
Let's look at these two alternatives. Firstly, there is the question do these people think that the policies they promote are in their own interests? If so, then why are they allowed to act in their own interests and others are not? They may disagree as to the merits of the different policies but to claim a right for oneself and disallow that right to others is morally wrong and nothing more than outright oppression.
The alternative is that these people are not acting in their own interests but rather altruistically and for some "greater good". This is even worse than the first case! Why? Because in this case the act is in effect a negation of life and a vote for death. The logical outcome of such altruism is suicide and death. Why? Because if someone continually sacrifices themselves and does not act to support their own life then death is the inevitable consequence.
This is disgusting and morally depraved. Usually such people have little or no self-esteem, hate themselves and, as a consequence, hate everyone else. Ayn Rand viewed altruism as her worst enemy for this reason.
It's worth reviewing a couple of the fundamental tenets upon which Rand based her philosophy. In essence, these are:
1. Each individual has the right to exist and each life is it's own justification; and
2. Each individual has the right to pursue their own happiness and highest good, without interference from others.
Note that in pursuing their own interest, the individual does not have the right to infringe on others.
This approach is first and foremost "pro-life". Everything that follows (such as the conclusion that free market capitalism is the best, and only moral, system for society) is a consequence of this.
posted by Kevin Francis at
10:04 am
