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From: flink@umcp-cs.UUCP (Paul V. Torek)
Newsgroups: net.philosophy,net.politics.theory
Subject: Re: Ayn Rand's derivation of her ethics
Message-ID: <832@umcp-cs.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 12-Jul-85 19:27:35 EDT
Article-I.D.: umcp-cs.832
Posted: Fri Jul 12 19:27:35 1985
Date-Received: Mon, 15-Jul-85 00:05:25 EDT
References: <787@umcp-cs.UUCP> <3978@alice.UUCP>
Reply-To: flink@maryland.UUCP (Paul V. Torek)
Organization: U of Maryland, Computer Science Dept., College Park, MD
Lines: 12
Xref: linus net.philosophy:1776 net.politics.theory:891

In article <3978@alice.UUCP> ark@alice.UUCP (Andrew Koenig) writes:
>In several places, [Rand] said that it is entirely rational that you
>might value another person so much that you would be willing to
>do anything for that other person.  But to so value people you have
>never met?  That you don't even know exist?

I value people I've never met -- not THAT much.  But some.  It's not
irrational; it comes from acknowledging their similarity as human
subjects with benefit and harm at stake.  Valuing others to the exclusion
of oneself is indeed irrational, but "selfishness" (even Rand's mild
variety of it) is not the only alternative.
						--Paul V Torek