[sig226]

”They proclaim that every man born is entitled to exist without labor and, the laws of reality to the contrary notwithstanding, is entitled to receive ‘minimum sustenance’ – his food, his clothes, his shelter – with no effort on his part, as his due and birthright.”

This seems embarrassingly similar to the modern belief in entitlements. What are the foundations of an individual’s call on society for any of these basics?

I actually don't have a problem with this, as long as it is recognized that the free stuff to which my neighbor is entitled is not anything a man of even slight ambition would want. Should men be denied the essentials of life because of inability? No, this is without empathy and cruel.

Should men be given the opportunity to spend $10,000 on wheels, paint, and sound systems for a car because they're saving $1,000 a month in housing subsidized on my dime? Hell no. Free stuff will be worth what was paid for it.

[sig226]

Oh, I’m changing the theme question of the book.

Who is Jim Thompson? :P

[Texas Mulerider]

I’ve enjoyed this entire project. I’m looking forward to the discussion of the Federalist Papers.

Please add me to your ping list.

Thanks!

[calex59]

Let me remind everyone on this thread of something. The second amendment is still in effect. If you allow yourself to be sold into slavery while still armed then you deserve it.

[M Kehoe]

Bttt.

5.56mm

[stylin_geek]

Future non-fiction discussions: “Peter the Great” or “Dreadnought,” both by Robert Massey.

William Shirer’s classic “The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich.” Brilliant history and a lot of parallels to the current direction of our country.

Fiction: Robert Heinlein’s “The Moon is a Harsh Mistress,” “Time Enough for Love,” “The Past Through Tomorrow.”

For some lengthy but great literature: Victor Hugo’s “Les Miserable.”

[gogeo]

I first read AS in Junior High. I got an initial F on a book report I did on the book because the teacher thought I'd merely read the dust cover. This book has had a profound influence on my life.

I write, both for reading and for the spoken word. This speech was designed to be read, not spoken.

[Tired of Taxes]

Like everyone else, I found this chapter torturous. At a certain point, I started speed reading and eventually skimming through it. But, the way you outlined it on this thread makes it easier to think through. Thank you. I hope to return to this thread over the next few days.

[denydenydeny]

so it is under socialism – the individual does not die, he simply becomes crippled, paranoid, petty, and eventually destructive of everyone’s interests including his own. He does not die; he simply turns into something contemptible.

Reading those lines, I thought of the old Soviet Union, where people spent hours in line waiting for a tube of toothpaste or a roll of toilet paper.

Also thinking of every commune memoir I ever read, where by the second year everyone was labeling their own food.

[r-q-tek86]

Part III, Chapter VIII: The Egoist