I like the following definition from the Philosophical Lexicon: rand, n. An angry tirade occasioned by mistaking philosophical disagreement for a personal attack and/or evidence of unspeakable moral corruption. "When I questioned his second premise, he flew into a rand." Also, to attack or stigmatise through a rand. "When I defended socialised medicine, I was randed as a communist." http://www.philosophicallexicon.com/#R
(I also like their definition of the verb, "to quine": quine, v. (1) To deny resolutely the existence or importance of something real or significant. "Some philosophers have quined classes, and some have even quined physical objects." Occasionally used intr., e.g., "You think I quine, sir. I assure you I do not!" (2) n. The total aggregate sensory surface of the world; hence quinitis, irritation of the quine.) Francis On 27 Aug., 17:12, Chris Jenkins <[email protected]> wrote: > From > here:http://www.willwilkinson.net/flybottle/2009/08/24/what-we-are-not-emb... > > " > > Here is a good debate proposition: It ought to be less embarrassing to have > been influenced by Ayn Rand than by Karl Marx. > > The most powerful way to argue the affirmative is to compare the number of > human beings murdered by the devotees of each. That line of attack ought to > be decisive, but I’m afraid it won’t get you far with the multitude of > highly-self-regarded thinkers influenced by Karl Marx. Fact is, commitment > to some kind of socialism and fluency in the jargon of Marxism used to be > mandatory for serious intellectuals. And there’s something glamorous in the > very idea of the intellectual. Even for those of us who came of age after > 1989, Marxism, like cigarettes, remains linked by association to the idea of > the intellectual, and so, like cigarettes, shares in the intellectual’s > glamour. I don’t know if cigarettes or Marxism have killed more people, but > it’s pretty clear cigarettes are more actively stigmatized. Marxists, > neo-Marxists, crypto-Marxists, post-Marxists, etc. have an enduring > influence on intellectual fashion. So it is not only possible proudly to > confess Marx’s influence on one’s thought, but it remains possible in some > quarters to impress by doing so. It ought to be embarrassing, but it isn’t. > Being a bit of a Marxist is like having a closet full of pirate blouses but > never having to worry." > > This gave me pause for consideration. Rand's philosophies have been much > maligned as "uncompassionate", while certain "socialist" (Marxist Communist) > policies have been held up as an ideal, and yet, how many people have been > killed in the name of Randian philosophy, and how many have been killed in > the name of Marxist philosophy? > > What do YOU think? ;) --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups ""Minds Eye"" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/minds-eye?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
