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Hi folks! First I want to remind everyone that the page on OpEd News where all my articles can be accessed is http://www.opednews.com/author/author75.html .Since I put up my page on MySpace http://www.myspace.com/sleser I've been getting a lot of questions on my list of friends, particularly those philosophers I have chosen to add. Of those, no one has garnered more questions than Ayn Rand.
People ask me why I would add Rand, who is a libertarian right philosopher, if I am on the progressive left. The answer is simple.
I would much rather that people on the right (and left) spend time thinking through and writing down well thought out position papers, philosophies and the like instead of engaging in the reactionary politics that so often substitutes for clear thinking these days. Anytime you have a Chomsky or Rand doing this (and yes, I know Rand passed away some time ago), it makes it easier for everyone to stake out their own positions, philosophies and moral codes using these works as an offset. I've gobbled up as many books by both Chomsky and Rand as I can and while I sometimes take a critical view of them, I have used both as a way to crystalize my own beliefs.
It is too bad that we dont have more works that help define other parts of the political spectrum. Developing positions on issues without a strong underlying philosophy or core set of values just doesn't have the same strength behind it.
Steve
