The Objective Standard: Spring 2013, Vol. 8, No. 1

by Richard Salsman, Eric Daniels, Ari Armstrong, Daniel Wahl, Andrew Bernstein

Overview

The Spring 2013 edition of The Objective Standard features "The End of Central Banking, Part I" (Richard M. Salsman), "Why 'Big Government' is Not the Problem" (Eric Daniels), "Christianity: Good or Bad for Mankind?" (a debate between Dinesh D�Souza and Andrew Bernstein), and "Robert G. Natelson on State-Driven Amendments to Restrain Federal Spending." The issue also features reviews of the films "Zero Dark Thirty," "FrackNation," "Jiro Dreams of Sushi�; and the books "Beyond Politics: The Roots of Government Failure (by Randy Simmons), "The Little Book of Talent" (by Daniel Coyle), and "The Island at the Center of the World" (by Russell Shorto).

The Objective Standard is a quarterly journal of culture and politics written from an Objectivist perspective (Objectivism being Ayn Rand�s philosophy of reason, egoism, and laissez-faire capitalism). The journal is based on the idea that for every human concern�from personal matters to foreign policy, from the sciences to the arts, from education to legislation�there are demonstrably objective standards by reference to which we can assess what is true or false, good or bad, right or wrong. The purpose of the journal is to analyze and evaluate ideas, trends, events, and policies accordingly.

We maintain that the standards of both knowledge and value derive from the facts of reality; that truth is discovered only by means of reason (i.e., through observation and logic); that the factual requirements of man�s life on earth determine his moral values; that the selfish pursuit of one�s own life-serving goals is virtuous; and that individual rights are moral principles defining the fundamental requirements of a civilized society.

We stand opposed to the notion that the standards of knowledge and value are not factual but subjective (feeling-based) or other-worldly (faith-based); that truth is ultimately dictated by majority opinion or a �supernatural� being�s will; that democratic consensus or �God�s word� determines what is moral; that sacrifice for �the common good� or in obedience to �God�s commands� is virtuous; and that rights are social conventions or �divine decrees.�

In stark contrast to these philosophic approaches, ours is a philosophy of reality, reason, egoism, and laissez-faire capitalism.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940016298078
Publisher:	Glen Allen Press
Publication date:	03/13/2013
Series:	The Objective Standard , #29
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	NOOK Book
Pages:	120
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

Richard Salsman is president of InterMarket Forecasting, Inc., an investment consulting firm. He was previously a senior economist at H.C. Wainwright Economics, Inc. (1993�1999) and a banker at Citibank and the Bank of New York (1981�1992). He has authored two books, Gold and Liberty (1995) and Breaking the Banks: Central Banking Problems and Free Banking Solutions (1990); and six chapters on such topics as banking crises, profit theory, antitrust law, the Great Depression, and environmentalism. His work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, The Economist, the New York Times, Investor's Business Daily, Barron�s, Forbes,The Intellectual Activist, and Capitalism Magazine. He holds a BA in economics from Bowdoin College (1981) and an MA in economics from New York University (1988).

Andrew Bernstein holds a PhD in philosophy from the Graduate School of the City University of New York. He teaches philosophy at SUNY Purchase, which selected him �Outstanding Teacher of the Year� in 2004. He is the author of The Capitalist Manifesto: The Historic, Economic, and Philosophic Case for Laissez-Faire (2005); Objectivism in One Lesson: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Ayn Rand (2008); Capitalism Unbound: The Incontestable Moral Case for Individual Rights (2010); and Capitalist Solutions (2011). Dr. Bernstein is a contributing editor of The Objective Standard, and he publishes a regular column at Forbes.com.

Dr. Eric Daniels (PhD, University of Wisconsin, 2001) is a research assistant professor at Clemson University's Institute for the Study of Capitalism. He lectures on American intellectual, business, legal, and political history to audiences at colleges and community groups around the country. He recently coauthored the U.S. Economic Freedom Index. His other publications include a chapter in The Abolition of Antitrust and five entries in The Oxford Companion to United States History. Daniels has appeared on C-SPAN and Voice of America radio, and his op-eds have been published in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the San Diego Business Journal.