The Objectivist Response to the Problem of Corruption

The topic of this month's Atlas Sunday Club Philosophy Salon is "The Objectivist Response to the Problem of Corruption".

An analysis of corruption--what does it mean and under what contexts does it arise.
Understanding the dynamics of power and the origins of corruption.
Examining the Objectivist solution to the problem of corruption.
Open discussion and Q&A.

Health Center Building,
University of Mumbai Kalina Campus,
Kalina, Santacrus East
First bulding to the right as soon as you enter the kalina campus main gate
Mumbai, India

Contact: Jerry Johnson @ 9930312685

Jan 30, 2011: Atlas Sunday Club Philosophy Salon

The new year's first Atlas Sunday Club Philosophy Salon will be held on the following date:
January 30, 2011
5:30 PM onwards
Venue:
Health Center Building
University of Mumbai
Kalina Campus (On the right-hand side as soon as you enter the campus gates)
Santacruz East
Mumbai - 55

AGENDA FOR THE EVENT

First, we have some good news to share!
Professor Mugdha Karnik, who teaches at the University of Mumbai and is a fan of Ayn Rand's novels, has just completed her translation of Atlas Shrugged into Marathi. Her work is availabled through Diamond Publishers. For more details, read the post immediately below this one.

Professor Karnik has accepted our invitation to attend the Atlas Sunday Club Salon and read out some of her favorite passages from the novel in Marathi. It would certainly be unusual to hear the sound of Atlas Shrugged in a regional language.

Next, we shall screen a short 3-minute film "The Sixth Sense" that dramatizes the concept of mysticism versus rationality. We will specifically discuss the influence of new-age mysticism--the concepts of ego-illusion and Universal Consciousness--and the arguments that refute it.

Gear up for an EXCITING meeting ahead!

For assistance with directions, please call: Deepak at 0 9769 331 585 or Jerry Johnson at 99303 12 685.

The Nature of Extremism

At our most recent Atlas Sunday Meet in Bombay, I was asked the following question--in somewhat similar words:
"Your view seems very extremist to me. Why do we have to look at extremes--Communism or Capitalism; free markets or government control? Can we not strike a balance between full and unregulated economy and some amount of legitimate control?"

My response was:
In popular parlance, extremism has a negative connotation. Any extremist position is considered immature at best and evil at worst.
However, extremism really is an invalid package deal. Nothing in the concept permits your mind to evaluate the content of the extremist position. It simply demands--without offering any evidence to your rational faculty--that any position labeled "extreme" must be rejected ipso facto.
In one of my blogposts on Leitmotif, I had said:
Anything regarded as "extreme," "radical," "ideal," "fundamental," or "principled" is viewed negatively or with suspicion.
In contrast, concepts like "open-minded" have come to refer to the attribute of someone who is unsure or uncertain of every idea and belief, of someone who is open to any and every kind of persuasion, of someone who is unwilling or incapable of committing to any point of view even if it is true to the best of his knowledge.
To me, this modern connotation of "open-mindedness" is more akin to intellectual promiscuity.

Whenever one is confronted with the package deal of "extremism," one has to unravel the contents of the position to properly evaluate the merits of the idea. For instance, being an extremist or an absolutist about human rights--the right of every human being to life, liberty, property, and pursuit of happiness--cannot conceivably be wrong.
And that is what capitalism is: it is an extremist position in the political and economic context about human rights.

Atlas Sunday Meet, Mumbai

Here below are the details of the next Atlas Sunday Meet:

Date: 1st August 2010

Venue: 

Centre for Extra Mural Studies,

2nd Floor,

Health Centre Building, 

Vidyanagri (Mumbai University Campus), 

Kalina,

Santacruz East,

Mumbai 98

Topic: THE MORAL FOUNDATIONS OF CAPITALISM

A discussion on the moral foundations of Capitalism
-- What is capitalism?
-- What are its basic principles?-- How is it related to morality?
-- How is capitalism related to human nature and the nature of reality?
-- Can laissez-faire capitalism be practised in India? Some examples.

Participants are encouraged to read on the topic as much as possible before the event to be prepared for a stimulating discussion. Recommendations to begin are "Capitalism: An Unknown Ideal" by Ayn Rand and the website of the Ludwig von Mises Institute at http://www.mises.org/

Also, read excerpts from Objectivist materials on Capitalism from the Ayn Rand Lexicon at:

http://aynrandlexicon.com/lexicon/capitalism.html 

AynrandIndia facebook group


––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

check the report here.

Atlas Sunday Meet, Mumbai

Here are the details of the next Atlas Meet in Mumbai.

Date: 20th June 2010
Time: 6:30pm
Venue:
LJ Business & Training Centre
364, CD Parvati Gangadhar Building,
NC Kelkar Road,
Behind PNB Bank,
Dadar West,
Mumbai

Agenda:

Discussion on "Can there be a Moral System without God"

In one of the past meets, we had a discussion on Atheism and a view that one of the aspects of being an objectivist is to be an atheist. It was quite a discussion and we had many interesting points on the table. Hence, to take the discussion forward in a more organised manner, this time we have invited Father Anthony to join us in the discussion.

Also present during this meet will be members from the Time Out Magazine to cover the event.

Please do let us know how many of you are coming, so that we can make the necessary arrangements.

See ya!

Atlas Meets Delhi - Report

The much awaited first Atlas meet in Delhi was quite a memorable affair. It brought together ten enthusiastic voices driven by a common interest, although the backgrounds and the experiences with Ayn Rand were as varied as one could imagine (not to mention an 11th ‘little’ observer, who will perhaps need a decade and a half before he can really contribute to this group!). There were no dissenters, however, and it was agreed, by and large, that the core group should only contain people who have an interest in Rand and her philosophy and would appreciate and contribute to an initiative to spread these ideas further in India.

The Participants
The meeting was conducted between 5-8 pm, in two sessions divided by a little ‘tea and snacks’ break. The participation was slightly different both sides of the interval. In the first part, Vikram, Barun and Amar, playing hosts, were joined by Avinash Mullick, formerly a facilities manager with ICICI bank, Arun Virmani, an architect inspired by Howard Roark, Sharad Joshi, a Rajya Sabha MP (yes, a member of parliament influenced by Ayn Rand!), Poonam Kapoor Vasudeva, a textile designer and a theater person, and Jayant Bhandari from Vancouver, who was passing through Delhi and found this evening an engaging enough prospect. Sharad Joshi left us at the tea break, but his empty chair was more than made up for, as two new participants joined us at that time – Anuradha and Gautam, a software engineer. Both of them have had a long association with Barun and the Liberty Institute, and both are very interested in Ayn Rand’s philosophy (and they were the ones with Rohan, their nine month old son).

The Course Of The Meeting
It took no time for the ice to break and the meeting to gather speed. Much of the discussion, debate and cross-fire along the course of the evening were surrounding the questions – ‘what value can such a group add to the participants?’, and ‘how can Ayn Rand’s ideas be spread further in India?

It all began when, after the introductions, Barun gave the background behind the initiative of the Atlas Meets and set out its objectives. Vikram summed these up as the 3S’s. The first of these is to savor the company of like-minded individuals (what greater goal can there be than the simple pleasure from such an unusual and refreshing evening?). The next is to study Ayn Rand’ books, her philosophy of objectivism and commentary upon it. Also included in this is applying her philosophy to current issues. Third in line is spreading her ideas in India. An alert observation by Sharad Joshi gave us a 4th S – sustaining this group and its efforts in the long-run. Finally we all decided that this was, in fact, the most crucial of all the S’s!

More specifically, several ideas were suggested to actively promote these S’s over the course of these meetings, and even beyond them. Here is a list:

1. Translations of Ayn Rand’s books into Indian languages.
2. Actively promoting an understanding of certain excerpts from Ayn Rand’s novels – perhaps even developing video versions of some of the long speeches and monologues from the Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged (like the Galt’s speech video already on you tube)
   Reaching out to university students through publicity campaigns and perhaps even talks and lectures.
3. Identifying the right age group to begin promoting Ayn Rand’s ideas in India
4. The need to promote the Ayn Rand Institute’s essay contest in India.
5. Using the medium of bookstores to publicize this group and Ayn Rand’s ideas.
6. Blog posts and comments applying Ayn Rand’s ideas to current issues.
7. Applying Ayn Rand’s ideas to public positions, such as the political and economic situation in India.
8. Writing letters to the editors based on the two points mentioned just above
9. Applying Ayn Rand’s ideas to personal situations and circumstances
10. Watching videos and interviews with an objectivist interest
11. Inviting guests for talks
12. Starting a study group for those interested in understanding objectivism further
13. Hosting the play ‘Night Of January 16th’ in Delhi (a couple of us observed that a theater group in Hyderabad had performed this recently)
14. Identifying famous Indians who can be considered objectivist role-models

Tfinal choice of targets will depend, to a great extent, on the level of interest and initiative that the people seriously involved are willing to show. Identifying this might be the objective of our next meeting... The first of our decisions was, simply, pertaining to the regularity with which this group should meet. We decided that the fourth Saturday of every month represented a time interval and discipline that everyone was very comfortable with.

Chicken Soup For The Soul…
This is what Vikram called it – not the entire meeting, but the first part of the John Galt’s Speech video that we screened just before the snacks break. We all ‘watched’ the powerful words, enhanced by an interesting collage of images, with rapt attention. The entire representation is in 17 parts, and is certainly worth a watch on youtube.

We also screened a short talk given by Yaron Brook, devoted to the reasons why he is optimistic about the influence that Ayn Rand’s ideas might have in America’s future. It gave us a very good idea about the scale of effort that the Ayn Rand Institute is putting in, and the sudden boost in general interest in Ayn Rand’s novels in America. This is available on youtube as well.

Well, this was as much as we could pack into three hours! And has this been a long blog post… I guess it indicates that the meeting was a real tour de force! Vikram has even posted a video on youtube from our meeting.

Here is the link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qUiY3bcOPY. Be sure to catch a glimpse!

I, for one, am already looking forward to the next edition of the Atlas Delhi meet planned for the 22nd of August.

- Amar Gujral

Atlas Meets Delhi

Calling all those who cherish the ideals that Ayn Rand portrayed in her writings. You are welcome to this meeting in Delhi, on July 25, 2009, at 5 pm, in South Extension Part 1.

For more details, please visit this web page.http://www.aynrand.in/story.aspx?id=2657&pubid=2547

Relevance of Ayn Rand can hardly be lost, but in today's economic and intellectual environment, the ideals of individual liberty she articulated decades ago seem even more appropriate.

Looking forward to meeting you.

Atlas Sunday Meet - Pune

After two successful meetings in Mumbai, we have scheduled this meeting in Pune. Some Ayn Rand followers have helped us organise this meeting in Pune.

We invite Punekars...
Date: 12th July 2009
Time: 4:30pm
Venue: 3, Building 12-B, Paschimanagari Society, Near City Pride, Kothrud, Pune.
Agenda:

• Recounting your initiation to the world of Ayn Rand;
• Ayn Rand 1974 interview

Please come with your views and opinions. For and against. And come with an open mind to accept and reject. To agree to disagree..

Atlas Sunday Meet - 14th June 2009

Date: 14th June 2009
Venue: A45, Vijay Kunj, Opp New Model English School, Vakola, Andheri East, Mumbai.
Attendees:
Yusuf Syed
Abhigyan Jha
Deepti Chauhan
Jerry Johnson
Kirtimalini Kuber
Agenda:
Presentation of an exclusive Ayn Rand Interview – 1974, followed by discussion

Note:
This is the second Atlas Sunday Meet in Mumbai. Last time the meeting was held at the Prithvi Café, Juhu (5th April 2009). The agenda of this meeting is to show Ayn Rand’s 1974 interview and have open discussions on her ideas. Jerry has offered his residence for the same, a nice and colourful bachelor pad. We – Yusuf, Abhigyan, Jerry and I – have gathered at around 4:30, quite punctual, and begin with a round of cool drinks to cool off.

Abhigyan Jha, a new member, who has received information of the Sunday Meet through common mailers, is a staunch Objectivist.

As we get done with the introductions, we plunge into the first round of discussions – the current economic scenario with reference to Rand’s predictions. Heated conversations begin on Objectivism. Minds have gone on to religion and to how objectivism cannot spread in India. There are two viewpoints presented – Jerry feels India is not ready for the economic overhaul that Objectivism calls for as free collectivism is deeply rooted in our culture. On the other hand Abhigyan strongly believes that India is the freest society existing today with the history dating back thousands of years. He says that the moguls and various other rulers diluted it and made it what it is today, but individualism and free markets distinguish Indians from the rest of the world. Abhigyan gives an example of the existence of the most number of small entrepreneurs – pan-walla thelas, small shops springing in every neighbourhood – showing the entrepreneurial independence of the Indian people.
Deepti Chauhan joins us at this point. She is not a die-hard Rand fan. But she likes whatever she has known of Rand’s philosophy.

Discussing such a huge philosophy and its applications will surely take many more hours. Hence, we start watching the interview. Two parts of the interview last for about 20 minutes. It is a gratifying experience to watch Ayn Rand speak – clearly, confidently and passionately – about what she believes and why she believes in it.

Yusuf leaves shortly after the video. Taking on from the interview, a new topic begins – the choices that man makes on the basis of principle and practicality. We know that many times, we come across choices which in principle are right, but do not work practically. In this view, Rand says that she finds these people most evil – who do the evil in spite of knowing that it is the evil.

The clock is ticking much faster than we thought – it is nearing 9pm. So, we stop the discussion and leave with enriched minds and confident of where we stand and the reasons we stand for.
I, for one, come home and watch other interviews of Ayn Rand on youtube...

(Attendees, please feel free to edit the above note if I have missed out on something or if I have mis-represented your thoughts)