The Evil, Black Heart of Environmentalism

For all the glitzy, fun, and hip messages we see on TV (especially children's programming) about earth day, the true essence of the green movement is most emphatically NOT about making the earth a better place for humans.

I've posted it a few times before, but it is so dead on, here it is again:

Most of the doe-eyed and brainwashed zealots who mouth platitudes about "saving the earth" aren't honest or intelligent enough to see what they're saying for what it is. But theirs is the malevolent view of human life, and their ultimate end--whether they grasp it or not--is the utter destruction of humanity, raising the value of bugs, weeds, and rocks above human happiness.

This is the life-or-death alternative faced by humanity. We either purposefully, rationally, happily exploit the resources of nature for our survival and flourishing, or we live the nasty, brutish, and short lives of savages.

Ask yourself which one of the alternatives is embraced by the likes of Gore and Holdren? Which one does the green movement idealize as perfection?

Flexible Tactics, Integrated Strategy, Inflexible Purpose

While reading Nothing Less than Victory: Decisive Wars and the Lessons of History by John David Lewis the other day, I came across something that I knew immediately I needed to post here. In the chapter about William Tecumseh Sherman, Lewis examines Sherman's goal-directed actions as he planned and executed his march through the South, and how he refused to make sacrifices or take any irrational actions that might stand in the way of his ultimate goal. For instance, he did not get bogged down in any battles over entrenched positions.

Most of all, he had to keep a firm eye on his strategic goal, to get from Atlanta to the sea, and then to move north to meet up with Grant. This goal would take precedence over secondary targets, such as taking a city like Augusta; it was the end point that must not be forgotten. All else was a means to an end.

These observations allowed him to adopt a strategy of "multiple objectives." His goal was the sea and then Lee's army in the north; these were certain. But he left open where he would arrive at the sea; this could depend on circumstances. Major Thomas Osborn wrote that no one—from the generals to line officers—knew Sherman's destination, but "no one had any misgivings about the success." Scipio may have used the same approach when planning the assault on New Carthage, and later when moving by sea to the coast of Africa; the particular terminus could be left open. For both commanders, a firm goal and fluid actions to attain that goal were not incompatible; flexible tactics within an integrated strategy could achieve an inflexible purpose. In this way he could keep the enemy off guard and unsure of where he was going. "I can take so eccentric a course" Sherman wrote "that no general can guess my path." [italics in original, bold added]

The sentence I highlighted above could be a motto for a successful life, let alone an effective and principled way to wage war. It can apply broadly to any goal-directed action. Do you want to find a new job? Save for a vacation? Write a book? Lose weight? Identify your goal, your long-range purpose, develop an integrated strategy taking into account all variables, possible conflicts, and most importantly your principles, and then keep your eyes open for any tactical measures that will move you relentlessly toward your goal.

Note that this is in no way being pragmatic. An integrated strategy means that it relies on principles, values, and morals, and any particular tactic that would violate those would not ultimately move one closer to his goal. The moral is the practical when one's morality is egoistic and one acts based on reason.

A firm goal and fluid actions to attain that goal are not incompatible; flexible tactics within an integrated strategy can achieve an inflexible purpose.

Objectivist Roundup #143

Welcome to the April 8, 2010 edition of the Objectivist Roundup, your weekly dose of intellectual fuel and ammunition.

This roundup features posts by blog authors who are students and advocates of Objectivism, the philosophy of Ayn Rand. She called it a "philosophy for living on earth" and further described it:

My philosophy, in essence, is the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute.

"About the Author," Atlas Shrugged, Appendix.

Considering the events of the day you may notice that most of the posts below deal with politics (peppered with parenting and paleo posts). But note that they all share a common philosophical grounding in Objectivism, and consistently promote individual rights and the socio-economic system of laissez-faire capitalism to protect those rights. Such is the value of this roundup—weekly commentary on crucial issues from a rational, individual rights perspective.

And with that, I am pleased to present Objectivist Roundup #143!

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1. C.W. presents Treasury Grab of Retirement Assets, Personal Consequences posted at Krazy Economy, saying, "More on the potential theft of your retirement accounts. The stock market will suffer severely. It is important to keep an eye on this issue."


2. Rachel Miner presents Making Kid Thank Yous Fun! posted at The Playful Spirit, saying, "I love it when I can frame a chore as a treat! This has been a great tool for making my six year old happy about writing thank you notes."


3. Jim Woods presents Ravitch Admits Errors, Then Repeats posted at Words by Woods, saying, "Education historian Diana Ravitch repudiates her prior policy recommendations, then makes new ones using the same failed methodology."


4. Edward Cline presents Florida Democrat to Complain About Anti-Obama Sign posted at The Rule of Reason, saying, "As if to underscore the Democrats’ complete indifference to the political and economic consequences of ObamaCare, now or four years from now, and the “offensive” they are launching against anyone who resists or criticizes Obama or anything to do with him, Alan Grayson, a Florida Democratic representative, is filing a “complaint” against a Florida doctor, Dr. Jack Cassell, a urologist, who affixed a notice on his office door that read: “If you voted for Obama, seek urologic care elsewhere. Changes to your healthcare begin right now, not in four years.”"


5. Tom Stelene presents Davenport, Iowa: How Not to Eliminate Christianity posted at The Imaginary Philosophy, saying, "Leftists in government used sneaky, improper procedures to target Christianity and justified it with 'politically correct' intellectual dishonesty. This is an example of what gives secularism a bad name."


6. Diana Hsieh presents Individual Rights Versus Food Regulations posted at Modern Paleo, saying, "Government regulations in food production violate rights -- and ought to be repealed, not reformed."


7. Rational Jenn presents Parenting and Homeschooling: Most Definitely NOT a Sacrifice posted at Rational Jenn, saying, "This is a response to those who "compliment" me for "sacrificing" to stay at home with my kids and homeschool them. While I have indeed given up many lesser values in order to raise my kids and homeschool them, I have NOT given up any higher values. These are goals my husband and I have worked hard to provide for our family, not sacrifices."


8. Rational Jenn presents OGrownups Monthly Update posted at Rational Jenn, saying, "A summary of the activity in OGrownups in March. Join us if you're interested in applying Objectivism to parenting! Non-Objectivists are welcome to join as lurkers."


9. John Drake presents Concepts in learning posted at Try Reason!, saying, "A rare find... two educational psychologists that support conceptual development in education. While there are some differences between Objectivist epistemology and their work, there are enough similarities to warrant further investigation."


10. Paul Hsieh presents 2010 Q1 FRO Media Output posted at NoodleFood, saying, "In the first 3 months of 2010, Front Range Objectivism members continued their activism, publishing 22 OpEds, 11 LTEs, and 2 articles."


11. Francis Luong (Franco) presents Sharing Ideas on the Internet posted at Just Add Rationality, saying, "Debating can be ugly. That's why there are always so many rules... I don't debate. But when I write, I set out to share ideas."


12. Francis Luong (Franco) presents Agnosticism and the Easter Bunny posted at Just Add Rationality, saying, "If you think something probably is invalid based on your reason, that is called NOT believing it. It is not agnosticism whether you are talking about a god, or jack-a-lopes, or man-bear-pig."


13. Ari Armstrong presents Church and State posted at Free Colorado, saying, "In this YouTube talk I briefly address the separation of church and state."


14. Paul Hsieh presents Tips For Getting Published posted at NoodleFood, saying, "Some suggestions on how to get *your* opinion pieces published!"


15. Beth Haynes presents Black Ribbon Project posted at Black Ribbon Project, saying, "This is a new blog dedicated to promoting the Black Ribbon Caduceus as a symbol of the recent destructive actions of government to health care freedom and to the integrity doctor-patient relationship."


16. Tod presents An Unusual Way to Beat Inflation posted at A Blog by Tod, saying, "Sometimes you can profit from the distortions created by inflation."


17. Kelly Elmore presents Cultivating the Virtues Parenting Podcast and Blog! posted at Reepicheep's Coracle, saying, "Here is the information about my and Rational Jenn's new joint venture, Cultivating the Virtues, a podcast about Objectivism and parenting with a special focus on positive discipline techniques.."


18. Mike Zemack presents "Regulating" Business - the Good and the Bad posted at Principled Perspectives, saying, "A professional arbitrator inadvertently highlights the popular confusion over an important issue, by packaging two distinct and opposing functions of government under the term “business regulation”."


19. Jason Stotts presents Sex Addiction? posted at Erosophia, saying, "For my first carnival post from Erosophia's new home, I'd like to submit my article criticizing the idea of sexual addiction. I hope you enjoy!"


20. Sandi Trixx presents Sticky Gas Pedal Nothing Compared to CAFE Standards posted at Sandi Trixx.


21. Nick Stanley presents The Economic Inquisition posted at Rational Writing.


22. Ron Pisaturo presents Update to an Old Proverb—Obama Supporters Take Heed at Ron Pisaturo’s Blog posted at Ron Pisaturo's Blog, saying, "Rob a man who fishes, and you feed yourself for a day. ..."


23. C.W. presents Background notes: Annuities, Retirement Plans, and the Government posted at Krazy Economy, saying, "This is to add some background and justification for the assertion that the Treasury wants to grab our retirement accounts."


24. Earl Parson presents Figueroa Produce: Provisioner for my Inner Caveman posted at Creatures of Prometheus, saying, "I sing the praises of my local market, Figueroa Produce. It is extremely clean, extremely well run, and I value the efforts of Luis, Anthony, and Ruben, its proprietors."


25. Doug Reich presents Obama's Frustration (in 2500 words or less). Why, when asked a simple question, does our president rant incoherently for 17 minutes? Doug examines our Pragmatist-in-chief.

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That concludes Objectivist Roundup #143. Next week's host will be John at Sacred Ego. Submit your blog article to the Objectivist Roundup using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.