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submitted 4 days ago by ZeffSyde@lemmy.world to c/books@lemmy.ml

A life time ago I lost a friend to Objectivist philosophy. Not wanting to lose said friend, I read The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged to try and figure out why he was acting like an asshole all of a sudden.

I took a couple points of psychic damage in the process, but at least I can stand my own when offering counter arguments against their edgy philosophies.

What are some other works that it would be handy to be knowledgeable of the next time a philosophical edge lord tries to quote me into a corner?

I'm looking to be more well informed in conversation.

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[-] comfy@lemmy.ml 7 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

I skimmed Seej to see why neo-Nazis believed it was a game changer (skimmed, because it becomes very obvious very quickly that it's not worth the paper it was printed on. A food wrapper is more informative)

It doesn't explain much one already doesn't pick up from its followers, there's no real theoretical depth or rationale. It's really just a syncretic mess that quotes revolutionaries from various movements , including anarchist and communist revolutionaries, as inspiration rather than actually understanding them. If anything, it just conclusively confirns how hollow that subculture is. It's a characteristic of syncretic Franken-ideologies, they can have (for lack of the right word) populist appeal but won't accomplish their goals no matter how hard they push. It's like a kid trying to complete an exam by peeking at the other student's essays on each desk around them, copying a few random sentences from each, not understanding that these sentences don't mean much when taken away from their foundation. The few correct points (e.g. some remarks about police) are poorly reasoned and its 'lessons' can't be generalized to synthesize correct ideas in other contexts. It's ultimately glorifying a tactic history proved doesn't work back in the 1900s, and the rallying cry in the conclusion is basically "just do things".

By the way, the author has been charged with taking nude photos of a minor, which they vowed to get back from police, and for threatening an ex-girlfriend (underaged) and her boyfriend with a handgun, along with other charges of minor exploitation.

this post was submitted on 15 May 2025
26 points (93.3% liked)

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