Ayn Rand's philosophy of Objectivism

[bennyboy]

I recently discoved Ayn Rand and learned about her philosphical views. I found it extremely interesting. The idea that "altruism is immoral" completel goes against all my previous ideas and intuitions, and therefore is quite an uncomfortable idea to entertain, but when I pushed through and read more about what she meant by it, it makes a lot of sense to me. To put it in my own words, she argues that people should not sacrifice themselves for other people if it does not fit with their own needs, because it is equal to suicide. If you help someone, do it because you have a need to do so, not because you think you should do that because you want to be a good person. You are responsible for your own life, and your own happiness. This sounds very healthy to me. I want people around me to live like this, I want my loved ones taking good care of themselves. Most people also have a need to take care of the people around them and to connect with them,  so I don't think that this philosophy leads to people to live self centred lives. It is very counter-intuitive, but it makes sense to me.

What do you think? Do I describe her philosophy well? Is there a flaw in this reasoning? Has this philosophy impacted your ideas as well?

The wolves abuse the social contract: without the sheep, there would be nothing for the wolves to feed on, without the working joe, there would be nobody to sweat on behalf of the ambitious.

Her idea is flawed, I think, in that she sees life as a zero-sum game: if I give you something, I will have less.  But this isn't true: I will have support when my luck goes sour, because I've invested in friendships.  I'll have the support of my community, because I'm a member in good standing.  I'll also have a greater joy-- because I am PART of something bigger than myself, and well-adjusted people have a desire to contribute to a greater good. Also, even in economic terms-- the selfish accumulation of wealth is leading to economic slowdown and a net loss for the American economy; so her views are short-sighted in that sense.

Now, if it is in your nature to be as she describes, then you may accumulate wealth and achieve your dreams.  But whether standing by while your peers suffer is anything less than being a dick, that's up to you to decide.