We are Radicals for Reason
Because of technical difficulties with TalkShoe, Show 089 was relatively short. For the beginning of the show Mosley and caller joey23 discuss Newsweek’s interview with Dr. Yaron Brook on Objectivism and the economic crisis, noting its comments on Alan Greenspan, the mainstream publicity for Objectivism it offers, as well as its objectivity. Then, for the remainder of the show, they discuss the related issue of government regulation in the economy.
On last week’s show on economic freedom, Mosley discussed a common argument against capitalism. The argument states that the capitalist assumes a mistaken view of human nature, namely, that given freedom, he will act morally. This led to the question, “Is man inherently good, evil, or neither?” that served as the main topic for this show.
Topics include: Thomas Hobbes and the view of man as a brute; man as neither inherently good nor evil; the reward and motivation for choosing to be good; contradictions in the Hobbesian view and argument for government intervention; altruism as wrongfully assumed as standard for whether man is good; the good as in man’s interest, but remains his choice; charities in a capitalist society; government “charity”/welfare parallel to FDA and regulatory institutions; cultural shift required for capitalism to work; example of paying tips at restaurant; capitalism in theory vs. practice; activism and successful argumentation; etc.
