While cleaning up my old home at Lake Tahoe, I came across two photographs and a certificate from September 1, 1985. I believe that this was the first OCON, at that time named The Jefferson School. (Correction: A friend emailed to let me know that the first TJS conference was in 1983.) This “OCON” was…
Author: Carl Barney
Making Ayn Rand’s Book Sales Soar Again
The mission of my Prometheus Foundation is to promote Ayn Rand and advance her philosophy of Objectivism. Two of the most effective ways to do this are to inspire people to read Rand’s books, especially The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged—and to promote and deliver Leonard Peikoff’s courses. Prometheus Foundation is achieving these aims in various…
A Wonderful (and Long-Overdue) Conference
A few weeks ago, more than 250 life-loving people gathered in beautiful Newton, MA for four days of fellowship and “philosophy for freedom and flourishing,” at TOS-Con 2021. The topics ranged from art to racism to self-development to capitalism, and all were unified by a single theme: the unique powers of reason and freedom to…
An Ayn Rand Scholarship Foundation
Ayn Rand declared, “What we need today are ‘new intellectuals’,” which she said includes “any man or woman who is willing to think, meaning: any man or woman who knows that man’s life must be guided by reason, by the intellect, not by feelings, wishes, whims, or mystic revelations. Any man or woman who values…
Ayn Rand’s Treasures Online
The Ayn Rand Institute announced a “goal to make much more of the [Ayn Rand] archives available online.” This is an exciting and valuable activity for the Ayn Rand Institute. Stay tuned for future updates; I will be periodically checking on their progress.
Providing for the Poor
Friedrich Nietzsche, the German philosopher, famously said: “That which does not kill us makes us stronger.” Typical of Nietzsche to say something exotic but not sensible. But contrary to Nietzsche, our current political ultracrepidarians (know-it-all politicians) suggest the opposite and are intent on providing unearned benefits to all, including forgiveness of student loans, free college,…
A Modern Miracle – Child Survival
One of the most tragic, wretchedly heartbreaking traumas for parents is the loss of a child, either neonatal or during childhood, adolescence, or even in their adult years. It’s just not supposed to happen! It feels like a betrayal; it can cause unspeakable suffering. I was struck by a column by Alison Gopnik titled “A…
Longevity and Sugar
In a recent article, Peter Attia, MD, a longevity specialist, explained some of the problems with dietary sugar. He wrote that: High glucose variability and higher (peak) glucose levels are each independently associated with accelerated onset of disease and death, even in non-diabetics. Prospective studies show that higher glucose variability in non-diabetics is associated with…
A Stunning Contrast to the Covid-19 Pandemic
According to most politicians and the mainstream media, the Covid-19 pandemic is one of the worst outbreaks in modern history—and it’s been well-managed. But a recent article by Niall Ferguson in the Wall Street Journal refutes both notions by comparing today’s pandemic to one that most people have forgotten about: the 1957 Asian flu outbreak….
Update to Millions Exposed to Ayn Rand: Is This Wrong?
In this post, I wrote that the video of Jordan Peterson at OCON 2018 had only 30,000 views on ARI’s YouTube channel. A reader informed me that the video is also posted on Dave Rubin’s channel and that it has 288,000 views there. The reader also pointed out that Peterson was onstage for 100 minutes,…