Alternatives Quote by Leonard Peikoff

“The unphilosophical majority among men are the ones most helplessly dependent on their era's dominant ideas. In times of crises these men need the guidance of some kind of theory; but, being unfamiliar with the field of ideas, they do not know that alternatives to the popular theories are…” quote by Leonard Peikoff — Download Open image

“The unphilosophical majority among men are the ones most helplessly dependent on their era's dominant ideas. In times of crises these men need the guidance of some kind of theory; but, being unfamiliar with the field of ideas, they do not know that alternatives to the popular theories are possible. They know only what they have always been taught.”

Leonard Peikoff

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Alternatives Crisis Dependent Dominant Eras Fields Guidance Ideas Kind Knows Majority Men Needs Philosophy Taught Theory Times of crisis Unfamiliar

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“An individual can be hurt in countless ways by other men's irrationality, dishonesty, injustice. Above all, he can be disappointed, perhaps grievously, by the vices of a person he had once trusted or loved. But as long as his property is not expropriated and he remains unmolested physically, the damage he sustains is essentially spiritual, not physical; in such a…

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“Statism and the advocacy of reason are philosophical opposites. They cannot coexist—neither in a philosophic system nor in a nation.”

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Now, the United States' response, the western response to this is a continuation of the appeasement that was started back in the '50s with…

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Ayn Rand held that art is a 're-creation of reality according to an artist's metaphysical value-judgements.' By its nature, therefore, a novel (like a…

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“[There is] a widespread approach to ideas which Objectivism repudiates altogether: agnosticism. I mean this term in a sense which applies to the question of God, but to many other issues also, such as extra-sensory perception or the claim that the stars influence man’s destiny. In regard to all such claims, the agnostic is the type who says, “I can’t…

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The unphilosophical majority among men are the ones most helplessly dependent on their era's dominant ideas.

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Objectivism advocates reason as man's sole means of knowledge, and therefore, for the reasons I have already given, it is atheist. It denies any…

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Unlike the Marxists, the Nazis did not advocate public ownership of the means of production. They did demand that the government oversee and run…

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What one needs to know in order to appraise a man morally is not: what did his mother say or do when he was…

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The more you learn, if you learn it properly, the more clear you become and the more you know.

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“Every argument for God and every attribute ascribed to Him rests on a false metaphysical premise. None can survive for a moment on a…

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Each man must reach his own verdict, by weighing all the relevant evidence.

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Explore all 18 Leonard Peikoff quotes

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I am very sad that some designers are still using real fur when the fake alternatives are so effective and so easily obtainable.

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The prophet who fails to present a bearable alternative and yet preaches doom is part of the trap that he postulates. Not only does he picture us caught in a tremendous man-made or God-made trap from which there is no escape, but we must also listen to him day in, day out, describe how the trap is inexorably closing. To…

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I strongly reject any conceptual scheme that places our options on a line, and holds that the only alternative to a pair of extreme…

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[When asked how it felt to be a female prime minister:] I don't know: I've never experienced the alternative.

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If one could have a wish, or an alternative life, I would've liked to have been John Lennon.

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THE REAL PURPOSE OF HOLOCAUST REVISIONISM IS TO MAKE NATIONAL SOCIALISM AN ACCEPTABLE POLITICAL ALTERNATIVE AGAIN.

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Men since the beginning of time have sought peace...military alliances, balances of power, leagues of nations, all in turn have failed, leaving the only…

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Buddhist words such as compassion and emptiness don't mean much until we start cultivating our innate ability simply to be there with pain with an open heart and the willingness not to instantly try to get ground under our feet. For instance, if what we're feeling is rage, we usually assume that there are only two ways to relate to…

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