The Ten Commandments vs. America

Here's a link to an excellent editorial asking the philosophical questions, "What are the ten commandments?" "What is their actual philosophic meaning?"
Go. Read.

http://www.aynrand.org/medialink/tencommandmentsvsamerica.shtml


The premise of this editorial is the incompatability of religion with everyday life, let alone forming a government around the commandments.


[Hat Tip: The Ayn Rand Institute]

Producer Advocate added to Blog list

A former writer for Capitalism Magazine, Mr. Laren has his own Blog.
Check it out if you like the Second Amendment.

Chicago Sun-Times on SpaceShipOne

Here's the linkup to an article on the flight of Burt Rutan's SpaceShipOne. I did not know that there were this many companies vying for the $10 million prize to be the first reusuable private spacecraft.
Way to go ladies and gentlemen!!!


http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-space22.html


[Hat tip: Egoist.blogspot.com]

America vs. Europe in GDP

Germany edges Arkansas in GDP figures...


WSJ article on Sweedish think tanks survey of European GDP vs. American states GDP.
No surprise, really....

http://www.opinionjournal.com/editorial/feature.html?id=110005242

Private Space Flight!!

Let's hope there's enough security on hand to prevent any terrorist action...

Way to go Rutan!!!


http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/us_space_tourism

Cynicism hits epidemic proportions...

I admit right off the bat that I have a different outlook on life and events than most people. I generally take a positive, benevolent view on things. Even to a fault. Where I've worked for the last five years, the people I work with are the most cynical, negative....and even foul tempered that I have ever had the misfortune to be around in my life. No matter what I try to point out to people, taking a positive viewpoint or arguing from a pro-America, pro-capitalist, pro-individualist perspective, they simply do not listen. Frankly, they would not change their mind/thought process to save their own lives. (There are one or two exceptions, to this, but that's all.)
Too much mental effort is involved in thinking for yourself these days. I'll just repeat what I've read or heard everyone else say, right or wrong. Who am I to know? Nobody has the answer. (Unless it's "Jesus" of course. He solves everything.)Yeah. Right.
I work at a major American corporation. Virtually none of my coworkers has even a rudimentary knowledge of capitalism or economics. "Everyone's out to rip off the little guy." "Management doesn't give a damn about us. I haven't gotten a raise in years!"
Excuse me. MAYBE it's your attitude toward life and work. Ever think of that?
What? Shut up dude.
This is the prevalent mindset I've faced coming to work every day. For years. There but for the grace of Ayn Rand, (and my own hard mental effort) go I.

Couple of Quotes...

“ In India, as elsewhere in our darkening world, religion is the poison in the blood. Where religion intervenes, mere innocence is no excuse. Yet we go on skating around this issue, speaking of religion in the fashionable language of 'respect.' What is there to respect in any of this, or in any of the crimes now being committed almost daily around the world in religion's dreaded name? ”

Salmon Rushdie [2002]

" I sometimes wish there was a God. I'd hope He would execute His "rapture" so all His people would be called to Him. Then that would leave the world free of illiterate, dogmatic, subhuman scum, who, because of their blind belief, are incapable of living happily on earth, and try to make life impossible for eveyone else. I'd say goodbye and good-riddance to bad company. Oh! If only there was a God!"

Yours Truly [2004]

Dennis Miller

Dennis Miller has an interesting political talk show on CNBC. I've been watching it for weeks now. Nine pm. EST, most weeknights.
Last night however, he deliberately tried to embarrass Michael Newdow, the atheist who brought suit to have the words "under God" removed from the Pledge. It was disgusting to see Miller's underlying philosophy of "majority (i.e. -- mob)rule, dude" mentality and his pathetic baiting tactic of Mr. Newdow to try to get him to admit there was a god.
Disgraceful. I'm not even gonna talk about the hapless twits on our Supreme Court who once again failed to make a ruling on a crucial, philosophical, Constitutional issue.(Insert vomit here.)
I've noticed to, that conservatives are now 'dissing' the word Republican, which if you think about it, is fine, as conservatives are theocrats, and republican's ( at least honest ones) are for limited government and seperation of church/state.

My two cents on Ronald Reagan

In 1980, I was in my mid-twenties and although I was leary of some of Reagan's ideas, and their consequences...Not the ones the "liberals" harp on, but others...I genuinely liked the man because he showed leadership. He reminded Americans of their heritage and assisted in renewing the American "spirit" of Individualism and liberty that was all but destroyed by that witless dolt Carter.
The main thing Reagan did that was negative, and we are suffering from it today, is he reintroduced religion into the 'mainstream' again. He allowed the vermin to crawl out from under their rocks and infect us all with their dogma's and their blind stupidity. At a time when reason is all but forgotten in American culture, religion has stepped into that void and taken over the debate on social issues where they have no business being.
So, while Reagan presided over the collapse of Communism, he unleashed a more virulent form of tyranny over the mind of man by constantly refering to religious beliefs.
Until and unless American's recapture their secular, non-skeptical, heritage, we are doomed to become a theocracy, worse than Iran. This is why Bush's "faith-based initiatives" must be turned back at all costs.
In a way, I wish Bush had the moral confidence Reagan had, because while his speech writers write the correct things most of the time, Bush himself cannot convey the proper intellectual or moral confidence needed to inspire the American people, nor rekindle that fundamental "spirit" of American freedom we so desperately need from our leadership today.

Channel 9

There's a great new website that features Microsoft employees and their ideas about a great many things. Go check it out @:

http://channel9.msdn.com/

[Hat Tip: Monica White...http://Th-Inkwell.blogspot.com]