(no subject)

[gwydion]

* Rand Paul has responded to yet another deadly pipe line explosion, this time in his own district, by singlehandedly holding up necessary regulation to =ensure things like automatic shut off valves, more inspections, and accurate safety related records keeping. After all the principle that all regulations are bad, especially those that save lives is more important than the lives of mere humans being lost to corporate negligence. Obviously. Remember: corporations are people: humans aren't.

* I am wondering who is more responsible for terrible things happening to actual human beings: L. Ron Hubbard or Ayn Rand? It would certainly prove an interesting debate.

* The Wall street protests are spreading to other towns and cities.

* Signal boost: http://psybelle.livejournal.com/668371.html

* "Bad news round up:" http://www.sparkindarkness.com/2011/09/bad-news-round-up.html

* Hector woke me up once. The Butt woke me up twice, once by randomly clawing my feet; once by dropping a laundry basket on me. I made two appointments for looking at apartments for tomorrow. One is already cancelled as they have stairs they called back to tell me about. My paperwork is still moving through the bureaucratic bowels.

* The Clutch: news, politics,

Comments

oo! oo! Mister Kot-ter!

[valancy]

* I am wondering who is more responsible for terrible things happening to actual human beings: L. Ron Hubbard or Ayn Rand? It would certainly prove an interesting debate.

I know it's not the end-all-be-all expert, but a quick Google search shows there are about 8 million Scientologists and 10 million Objectivists (if polls are to be believed). So if you're just going by sheer numbers, the Objectivists win.

I'd argue that the Objectivists influence more people because everyone they come in contact with is influenced by their belief system via their own behavior, whereas the Scientologists are influencing immediate families and friends maybe, maybe not even that, but not every grocery clerk or business person. It's possible not every Scientologist's parents are gonna think their kid is in a cult, though maybe they will think their kid is nuts, but either way, it could be something that has very little impact on their lives, like any (other) religion. But if your kid's an Objectivist it'll be in every interaction you have with them.

Re: oo! oo! Mister Kot-ter!

[gwydion]

I agree about the current numbers, but Scientology often bankrupts and does severe psychological damage to people in the cult, and has been doing thaat for generations. On the other hand, Objectivists are standing in the way of solving the economic crisis and are pushing to deliberately making things worse, which causes bankruptcy, homelessness, and ruined lives. Does the depth of damage done to individual Scientologists and their children over all the decades of the cults existence balance out the widespread havoc Objectivists do to our economic system? I'm honestly not sure. I'm leaning slightly in favour of Ayn Rand being more detrimental than L. Ron Hubbard, but I'd have leaned the other way if you asked me ten or fifteen years ago.