After Independence Day


Welcome to the third to last Objectivist Round Up.  

This week those of us who are advocates of a government limited to the protection of individual rights were dealt a strong blow by the Supreme Court decision to uphold the individual mandate, as well as the rest of the Affordable Care Act, as constitutional.  As some in the country struggle with what makes America America, those of us who understand the exceptional wisdom -- and limitations -- of our Founding Fathers continue to fight for its future.
The Declaration of Independence laid down the principle that “to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men.” This provided the only valid justification of a government and defined its only proper purpose: to protect man’s rights by protecting him from physical violence.
Thus the government’s function was changed from the role of ruler to the role of servant. The government was set to protect man from criminals—and the Constitution was written to protect man from the government. The Bill of Rights was not directed against private citizens, but against the government—as an explicit declaration that individual rights supersede any public or social power.
The result was the pattern of a civilized society which—for the brief span of some hundred and fifty years—America came close to achieving. A civilized society is one in which physical force is banned from human relationships—in which the government, acting as a policeman, may use force only in retaliation and only against those who initiate its use.

~Ayn Rand in “Man’s Rights

I urge you to read Ayn Rand’s essay in its entirety.


Darius Cooper presents Phrygian Cap posted at Practice Good Theory, asking "Do you know the symbolism of a Phyrgian Cap?"

Jenn Casey presents 2012: The Year So Far at Rational Jenn, saying "In this post I take a brief look at my accomplishments in the first half of this year. It's been an ambitious, crazy, productive six months. Soon, I'll come up with some Half Year Resolutions for the rest of 2012. How has your 2012 been so far? What are you planning for the rest of the year? I'd love to hear all about it in the comments!"

Stephen Bourque presents A Monument to America's Destruction at One Reality, calling it "A lesson of last week's Supreme Court ruling is that the Constitution is an empty document."

Paul Hsieh presents Another Doctor Squeezed By ObamaCare posted at We Stand Firm, saying "One of my colleagues is struggling to decide what to do after the Supreme Court health ruling. I hope he doesn't quit medicine, but I wouldn't blame him if he did."

Lynne Bourque (that’s me) presents Assonantal Assaults posted at 3 Ring Binder, saying "I had excellent teachers at my parochial elementary school. These are not them."

For inclusion in the penultimate round up to be hosted at The Playful Spirit, submit your post here.



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