Midway...

[PJ_Godzilla]

These...most are illegal and the balance are prosecutable ethics violations.  What I find funny about all of the righteous Randian talk is that for any of it to work as planned, people will have to stop doing bad things, lmao!  How much realism is in that probability? 

"Give you examples of how government handouts help the one but hurt the many?  There are lots of those.  Examples include crony capitalism, handouts to insider friends, money for bridges to nowhere, handouts to Solyndra, sweetheart real estate deals for the connected using public money, paying a particular company exorbitant fees for unnecessary work, etc."

No. Solyndra, for example, was a perfectly legal investment. The quid pro quo was sufficiently opaque that there was no illegality. But consider our point of departure here: it was your assertion that these transfers are helpful. Now you're telling us that, as priacticed, they aren't. I say that means they should stop. You seem to be arguing they should continue. The Randian assumption is that these types of transfers will always be corrupt, hence they should end. I think you're making a non-sequitur by arguing in their favor.

[Ardy123]

Ayn Rand was the child of a disgraced Russian wealthy family closely tied with the Czar and the feudal system. Her works were ultimately nothing more than a perverted expression of her loss of a trust-fund. If it wasn't for the decline of a nepotistic government & economic system (Feudalism/Monarchy), she wouldn't have written anything, and would be living a lavish life off of the backs of surfs...  Nothing capitalistic about her... just another sorry selfish sucker

[Midway]

See rule #2

 



The topic at hand is the grace, skill, and beauty of the Albatross.  

[PJ_Godzilla]

Ayn Rand was the child of a disgraced Russian wealthy family closely tied with the Czar and the feudal system. Her works were ultimately nothing more than a perverted expression of her loss of a trust-fund. If it wasn't for the decline of a nepotistic government & economic system (Feudalism/Monarchy), she wouldn't have written anything, and would be living a lavish life off of the backs of surfs...  Nothing capitalistic about her... just another sorry selfish sucker

My own misgivings about her aside, this account doesn't square with my sources. I believe she was actually a Kerensky supporter and the daughter of a businessman (non-observant Jewish) from Petersburg  - Rosenbaum, I believe. His business was confiscated by the Soviets, so yes, she and her family suffered great loss at the hands of the communists. That has a way of affecting your disposition. In this sesne, she reminds me a little of an old Cuban spanish teacher I had. Her father was a Doctor in pre-Castro Cuba. She didn't have much use for Castro after what happened.

So, if you have some source that ties her to the Romanovs, I'd like to see it. We studied her quite a bit at Flint School aboard TeVega. Such would be news to me. BTW, did your serfs, surf? ;^)

My own thinking: she was disaffected of collectivism but came to the US looking for its antithesis and was thus "ready to party" in some pretty unsavory ways. Consider her "rational affair" with Branden or her lifelong smoking habit. She's a classic OCD case who thinks that an economic system has something to say about sprituality. It doesn't. I t merely enables people to choose their own, hence, necessary but not sufficient. Her attempts at philosophy lack academic rigor. She's embarassing as an undergrad, much less as a philosopher. Her chief virtue was an ability to master some things people like me take for granted. Her denunciation of Hayek I find amusing. Hayek was her intellectual superior and a better channel.

[PJ_Godzilla]

Here's some reasonable "look and feel" on her childhood by way of a review: read and be educated: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/books/chap1/aynrand.htm

She and her family were hardly "closely tied" to the Tsar.

[Brooke]

Her works were ultimately nothing more than a perverted expression of her loss of a trust-fund. If it wasn't for the decline of a nepotistic government & economic system (Feudalism/Monarchy), she wouldn't have written anything, and would be living a lavish life off of the backs of surfs...  Nothing capitalistic about her... just another sorry selfish sucker

Having read some of her books, I disagree with all of that.

[Changeup]

No. Solyndra, for example, was a perfectly legal investment. The quid pro quo was sufficiently opaque that there was no illegality. But consider our point of departure here: it was your assertion that these transfers are helpful. Now you're telling us that, as priacticed, they aren't. I say that means they should stop. You seem to be arguing they should continue. The Randian assumption is that these types of transfers will always be corrupt, hence they should end. I think you're making a non-sequitur by arguing in their favor.

Then clearly you've read me wrong.  If you care, read it again.  I was quoting Brooke

[Ardy123]

Her chief virtue was an ability to master some things people like me take for granted. Her denunciation of Hayek I find amusing. Hayek was her intellectual superior and a better channel.

Yes, unlike Ayn Rand, Hayek does have plenty credibility, unfortunately the economic model proposed by ' the first Austrian school of economics' suffers from deflationary spirals. I should note that although Hayek is often associated with that school of thought he also believed in base line social services and in many ways deviated from that model. Furthermore, his associations with late 20th century conservative politicians have caused his work (from a cultural perspective) to be filtered through a 'right' leaning filter, dropping portions of his work & statements when they didn't align with political agendas.


and yes 'Serfs' not 'surfs' and 'Tsar' not 'Czar'

[Midway]

See rule #2

http://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/index.php/topic,361215.0.html

 

[Ardy123]

Albatross..........


..........is a nice plane! 

[Hoplite]

Albatross..........


..........is a nice plane! 
(Image removed from quote.)

That's a great photo....my favorite Rise of Flight ride.   

[Midway]

The mom or dad is guarding their baby right now: http://cams.allaboutbirds.org/channel/41/Laysan_Albatross/?utm_source=Cornell+Lab+eNews&utm_campaign=7dd922b88f-Cornell_Lab_eNews_2014_4_08&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_47588b5758-7dd922b88f-277783241


They are the most beautiful birds and the most graceful, the most skilled, the largest (weighting up to 25 pounds and up to 11 to 12 ft wingspans), and the most adept at flying.  


If I had to choose, I would choose to be an Albatross and fly for years without ever touching land or using hardly any more energy than sitting still.

http://www.usc.edu/org/cosee-west/October06Resources/Resources/Fast%20Facts.pdf


Nineteen of the 21 species of albatross are globally threatened with extinction.  

Albatrosses are dying at a rate of around one every five minutes

The ancestors of albatrosses evolved 50 million years ago, but it has taken only
three decades of longline fishing for many albatross populations to start
disappearing.  

Appreciate, honour, respect, admire, and embrace the beauty and skill of the Albatross.

[Midway]

Marvelous Facts About the Wandering Albatross

☞ These birds have an average lifespan of 80 to 85 years! Truly, a close friend of human beings.

☞ Once a Wandering Albatross grow into an adult, it leaves its nest and returns to the island only after 7 to 8 years!

☞ An important aspect about their mating, is that this species of albatross mates for life. No infidelity, indeed!

☞ There are roughly 21 species of albatross, out of which 19 face the threat to extinction.

☞ The most fascinating fact about Wandering Albatrosses, is that they have a wing span of nearly 11 feet. This makes them the biggest seabird alive!

☞ Most of the lifetime of these birds is spent in the air. They can fly for thousands of miles without landing. The only time they land is for mating or for food search. They remain afloat in the air flying for hours without any stopping! Well, that is surely mystical!

☞ Their name is derived from the fact that they wander most of the time, without stopping!

☞ A Wandering Albatross is gifted with a salt gland. It is situated above its nasal passage. This gland serves the peculiar function of draining excess salt that comes in the bird's body after drinking salt water!

☞ If a Wandering Albatross survives during its first year, it mostly lives up to 50 years or more. There are very few animal species that have such a tremendous adaptability.

☞ These birds are travel freaks, or call them globe trotters. They are known as the animals who travel the most during their entire lifetime!

☞ Since ancient times, it is a commonly held belief that killing a Wandering Albatross brings bad luck. Some sailors, in the olden days, hunted these birds for using their bones for manufacturing tobacco - pipe stems. In some places, they were hunted for food.

☞ They follow ships for hours continuously, as if they are also traveling to the place where the ship is going. Certainly, silent companions of sailors, in their long and tiring journeys!

What's Killing Them...☹
Uncontrolled practice of long line fishing in areas where they are dominantly found.
Water pollution mainly due to complex chemicals in plastics.
Fishing hooks.

Read more at Buzzle: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/wandering-albatross-facts.html

[XxDaSTaRxx]

Marvelous Facts About the Wandering Albatross

☞ These birds have an average lifespan of 80 to 85 years! Truly, a close friend of human beings.

☞ Once a Wandering Albatross grow into an adult, it leaves its nest and returns to the island only after 7 to 8 years!

☞ An important aspect about their mating, is that this species of albatross mates for life. No infidelity, indeed!

☞ There are roughly 21 species of albatross, out of which 19 face the threat to extinction.

☞ The most fascinating fact about Wandering Albatrosses, is that they have a wing span of nearly 11 feet. This makes them the biggest seabird alive!

☞ Most of the lifetime of these birds is spent in the air. They can fly for thousands of miles without landing. The only time they land is for mating or for food search. They remain afloat in the air flying for hours without any stopping! Well, that is surely mystical!

☞ Their name is derived from the fact that they wander most of the time, without stopping!

☞ A Wandering Albatross is gifted with a salt gland. It is situated above its nasal passage. This gland serves the peculiar function of draining excess salt that comes in the bird's body after drinking salt water!

☞ If a Wandering Albatross survives during its first year, it mostly lives up to 50 years or more. There are very few animal species that have such a tremendous adaptability.

☞ These birds are travel freaks, or call them globe trotters. They are known as the animals who travel the most during their entire lifetime!

☞ Since ancient times, it is a commonly held belief that killing a Wandering Albatross brings bad luck. Some sailors, in the olden days, hunted these birds for using their bones for manufacturing tobacco - pipe stems. In some places, they were hunted for food.

☞ They follow ships for hours continuously, as if they are also traveling to the place where the ship is going. Certainly, silent companions of sailors, in their long and tiring journeys!

What's Killing Them...☹
Uncontrolled practice of long line fishing in areas where they are dominantly found.
Water pollution mainly due to complex chemicals in plastics.
Fishing hooks.

Read more at Buzzle: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/wandering-albatross-facts.html

BIRDS

[Midway]

BIRDS

Birds indeed.  

As near to perfect flying living beings as you can get with a human lifespan as well as human mating and child rearing traits.  

These are no ordinary birds.  

Watch some videos of them, consider what you see, reflect, and you might also join the higher cult of mortals for having seen the Albatross.