Hank, I think you said you're an autonomist/objectivist and I take you at your word. Trouble is that objectivism doesn't say much at all of significance philosophically. You live your life as a responsible adult because you believe its right. I respect that. But it's not philosophy. You're also a bit of a curmudgeon. And I like that. You also ride a bike. I like that a lot. Now you see, I am indeed following along, albeit mostly silently.
I am not an objectivist. The very first sentence of the page I linked to begins, "Autonomy is not a philosophy, not an ideology ...." I agree with much of what many objectivists have written, however.
...objectivism doesn't say much at all of significance philosophically...
If it doesn't say much, what does that say about all the people who so vehemently oppose it. If it's so innocuous, why worry about it? It's pretty easy to say, "well that doesn't say much about such'n'such. Just once, I would like someone who has actually studied objectivism to point to some specific assertion and explain what is wrong with it.
Now, I can do that. My disagreements with objectivism are primarily refinements, but objectivism does have two or three very serious flaws. There is no metaphysics or ontology, and in the area of politics it makes some major mistakes, actually of a collectivist nature. Objectivist epistemology has made the first real advances in that area of philosophy since Locke (because after Hume, the entire field was destroyed). There are flaws with the epistemology, (one serious mistake in their understanding of the nature of perception and a mistake in their understanding of definition relative to concepts, for example) but all are correctable. The most important contribution of objectivism is their explication of the true nature of concepts as "identifications" and nothing more, which sweeps away mountains of metaphysical and mystical rubbish.
You live your life as a responsible adult because you believe its right. ... But it's not philosophy.
The way I live my life is entirely determined by my philosophy. If I learn that some aspect of my philosophy is incorrect, and it bears on my values, choices, or actions, the way I live my life will change. I live according to principles based on my understanding of my nature and the nature of the world I live in. One of those principles is that the purpose of my life (and yours) is to enjoy it (not make it last as long as possible). That's one reason I ride a bike and consider it an act, among other things, of moral defiance. But, of course, that is not philosophical.
You're also a bit of a curmudgeon.
My wife and my kitties think I'm a pushover.
I am indeed following along ...
Quite. How would you like to write my biography?
So, please do not be so quiet, and tell us some more about you. What is your philosophy and what principles do you live by? I believe they must be interesting, because you are. For example, is you choice of a screen-name significant or fortuitous?
Hank