It has been suggested that the politcis discussion be taken to another forum, which I am somewhat in agreement with (though I've enjoyed reading all the messages). I, however, want to take issue with a point made by Robert J. Woodhead:
The maintenance and improvement of [that] society, and the betterment of your fellow human beings, ought to be a primary goal.
Maybe it's your primary goal; it's certainly the goal of every Marxist/ Communist/Fascist regime that has every existed. I'm not accusing you of being any of these, but I wanted to point out that these ideologies all support the idea that one's self-interest is somehow evil and that only actions done for the benefit of society or "fellow human beings" are worthwhile and moral. I contend that one's self-interest should be one's primary goal (it is that one's choice however). This self-interest when combined with honesty and integrity is completely moral. It implies a recognition of others' right to be motivated by their own self-interests. Governments are established in order to make sure that self-interests do not conflict (e.g. my self-interest in having the money in your pocket and your self-interest in keeping it for yourself). The U.S. Government may have initially served such a purpose, but it comes nowhere near that today. I'm not saying there are any better places either; hopefully there will be soon. ---------------------------------------------------------------- | | | Joe Moorman <moormajb@vuse.vanderbilt.edu> | | | | To achieve Liberty in my time, | | Ready to relocate to Oceania... | | | ---------------------------------------------------------------- -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- Version: 2.3a mQCNAizFpXwAAAEEAMSgDF2B19fKu9tjmKPQ8wxmzUFLNLvgHy6UAff6V3zr17g5 Qsg9iE9NPTzhzCmKDPb1r1NcpkcSK+K7K8pVwYU6fqTw+/q81yMZ6Ori305Gbyxt QthNQ+JS5ixqCfzuxZ3h5cqtKXLM/XKTkVRMQGMN7z7+oBdV5AXMccsZHPSxAAUR tCpKb2UgTW9vcm1hbiA8bW9vcm1hamJAdnVzZS52YW5kZXJiaWx0LmVkdT4= =iu34 -----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----