Ayn Rand's Faith and Force: The Destroyers of the Modern World Revisited

Fascism, Fundamentalism and Terrorism Vs. Freedom and Reason

On February 17^th, 1960, Ayn Rand presented a lecture at Yale University titled "Faith and Force: The Destroyers of the Modern World" Nearly half a century later, we watch as the modern world is attacked from all sides, by faith and force.

The modern world can survive. I choose to believe it will survive. I make this choice on the basis of what I see and not on the basis of blind faith in an idea. 

Many seem to believe in various fundamentalist prophecies. Some believe in fundamentalist religion, others believe in fundamentalist materialism. Both groups seem to have an absolute faith in their own "rightness," but they only threaten the modern world when they resort to force. The recourse to violence by the state, and the armed prophets in our midst are the "destroyers of the modern world."

I am not one of Ayn Rand's "followers." Her economic and historical perspectives were highly flawed, and many of her ideas seem hopelessly naive to me, in the context of today's world. However her championship of reason, science, and intellectual freedom stands on its own merits, and remains as relevant as ever.

Was Ayn Rand a fundamentalist materialist? I don't think so. She was actually a romantic, an idealist, and a true advocate of all the best qualities of individual human beings. She defined morality as a necessity for survival while others defined capitalism as being "amoral," usually to justify their lack of morality. Contrary to what many seem to believe, she defined intellect as the highest form of wealth, the one currency from which all other honestly gained wealth came.

Reason and Science