This video moment from the Ayn Rand Institute highlights novelist-philosopher Ayn Rand’s escape from Soviet Russia and why she chose to build a new life in America.
The life of a creature without free will is determined by factors outside its control, so it is not responsible for what it does or what becomes of it. But because human beings have free will, the shape our lives take is up to us. True, we are born into circumstances that are not of our own making, and there are facts of nature that we cannot change, but there are countless lives possible to each of us, and by recognizing what you cannot control and taking responsibility for what you can, you can create a life of which you can be proud and in which you will be happy.
"Islamophobia," "meritocracy" and "extremism." These three anti-concepts obliterate clear thinking and shut down thoughtful discussion. Have you unwittingly accepted them into your thinking?
The Iranian Hostage Crisis, the Salman Rushdie Affair, September 11th and the Charlie Hebdo Massacre. Are we in the Western world doomed to more and more attacks by Islamic totalitarians? And what can anyone do about it? The answer might surprise you.
In the most recent episode of The Rubin Report, Don Watkins explains why Ayn Rand is such a controversial philosopher, what makes Watkins tick as an intellectual activist, the demonization of businessmen, the moral meaning of life, Objectivism and libertarianism, the unselfishness of Donald Trump and more.
In this extensive Q&A on Objectivism, Gregory Salmieri, Anthem Foundation Fellow in philosophy, philosophy lecturer at Rutgers University and co-editor with Allan Gotthelf of A Companion to Ayn Rand, answers questions such as: Is love and sex more than just hormones and self-interest? What’s the justification for limiting the term of intellectual property rights? Is Objectivism compatible with “liberalism” and “conservatism”? Why must retaliatory force be put under objective control? Why is living as a parasite worse than as a creator? Isn’t the choice to live arbitrary?
In remarks delivered at the launch of Ayn Rand Institute Europe, Lars Seier Christensen discusses Europe’s need for Rand's ideas, as well as the various obstacles to the spread of her influence there.
On May 6, 2016, David Rubin on Ora.TV’s The Rubin Report interviewed ARI’s executive director, Yaron Brook. In this extensive interview Dr. Brook discusses topics such as the life, works and philosophy of Ayn Rand, the failure of our public education system, the meaning of rational selfishness, the value of free trade and labor-saving machines and the cause of cronyism and government controls.
With the March 29 deadline approaching, apply today for ARI’s summer internship program to become one of the twenty to thirty college students or recent graduates who come to intern each June at the Ayn Rand Institute in sunny Southern California.
