Humor is the denial of metaphysical importance to that which you laugh at. The classic example: you see a very snooty, very well dressed dowager walking down the street, and then she slips on a banana peel . . . . What’s funny about it? It’s the contrast of the woman’s pretensions to reality. She acted very grand, but reality undercut it with a plain banana peel. That’s the denial of the metaphysical validity or importance of the pretensions of that woman. Therefore, humor is a destructive element—which is quite all right, but its value and its morality depend on what it is that you are laughing at. If what you are laughing at is the evil in the world (provided that you take it seriously, but occasionally you permit yourself to laugh at it), that’s fine. [To] laugh at that which is good, at heroes, at values, and above all at yourself [is] monstrous . . . . The worst evil that you can do, psychologically, is to laugh at yourself. That means spitting in your own face.
Ayn Rand during question period following:
Leonard Peikoff, “The Philosophy of Objectivism”
So, clearly we're not going to be out doing nasty pranks, but I think it's fun to make the day a reminder of the value of being playful.
Definition:
Full of fun and high spirits; frolicsome or sportive: a playful kitten.
Humorous; jesting
I shared a host of cheery ways to add humor to parenting in a previous post and I'm certain there are ways that can add a benevolent smile for those in other occupations as well. So, here's to a day of finding joy in the playful and benevolent!
On with this week's Objectivist Round Up:
Nick Stanley presents Consequences of Government Health Care posted at Rational Writing, saying, "The moral reasoning for free-market health care is well-established; this article is about the economic effects of Obamacare, and where Americans might possibly go for their care in the future.
First time O'ist Roundup participant, O'ist for the last few years. My blog is new, started really as a collection of analytic essays. Really hasn't taken off because I've been very busy lately. In any case, thanks for the opportunity."
Rachel Miner presents I should. I could. I want. posted at The Playful Spirit, saying, "I learned last week that we were allowed to post from elsewhere for the Objectivist Round Up, so I wanted to share this article (with comments) which spurred some thought for me. The developed recommendation for reframing has many positive implication both inside and outside of the parenting role."
C.W. presents PARALLELS, NASTY ONES posted at Krazy Economy, saying, "At this point we could see a prolonged recession/depression. Protecting your assets is an important issue. Keeping an eye on things economic is also important."
Leslie Kaminoff presents A Declaration of Independence for Yoga Educators posted at IYEA :: Independent Yoga Educators of America, saying, "This is my first submission to the blog carnival. As far as I know, I'm the only blogging, gun-owning, meat-eating, Objectivist Yoga educator in America (but I'd be happy to meet others).
This article was originally written for the International Journal of Yoga Therapy, but was not published because they did not have a "counterpoint" piece ready by the deadline. It was subsequently published in "Yoga Therapy Today.""
Rational Jenn presents PD Tool Card: Family Meetings Update posted at Rational Jenn, saying, "This is my most playful post of the week, a description of our second family meeting, featuring the *characters* who make up my family! The actual meeting itself was fun for all of us. :o)"
Julia Campbell presents Chipotle Chicken + Salad with Honey Lime Dressing posted at the crankin' kitchen!, saying, "Summer's coming!! (Not intended to be an April Fool's joke, though a snow storm may try to prove me wrong...)"
Diana Hsieh presents Thoughts on Tax Reform posted at NoodleFood, saying, "My thoughts on what we need in tax reform -- and why."
Stella presents We're all vicious, therefore we should all pay? posted at ReasonPharm, saying, "An argument that we should pay for each other's irresponsibilities falls flat."
Peter Cresswell presents New improved Economists Family Tree posted at Not PC, saying, "At the request of some colleagues seeking to introduce rational economics to students at our local university, I've produced a 'family tree of economics' tracing the history and competing schools of economics from the Physiocrats, Mercantilists & Salamanca School right up to the present day.
Comments, advice, and suggestions for further improvement are welcomed."
Jim Woods presents Are You a Good American? Newt Gingrich Will Tell You posted at Words by Woods, saying, "To lead off his 21st Century Contract with America, Newt Gingrich offers to quiz you on whether or not you are a good American."
Atul Kapur presents Left's "Unfair" Attack on Healthcare Industry posted at Wit Lab, saying, "The accusation that insurance companies are being "unfair" is actually a camouflage for denouncing profit."
Sandi Trixx presents On the WARN Act posted at Sandi Trixx, saying, "Besides being another immoral state mandated welfare program at the expense of employers, the WARN Act only serves to destroy company profits, create more unemployment and make politicians look good to those who don't know any better."
Kelly Elmore presents Parenting Toolbox: Validate Feelings posted at Reepicheep's Coracle, saying, "In this post, I discuss how to deal with children's emotions in order to facilitate introspection.""
C.W. presents "Too Big To Fail": Financial Reform posted at Krazy Economy, saying, "This is one of the consequences of the proposed "financial reform" before Congress. Our country's economy will shrink for many reasons and this is one of them."
Paul Hsieh presents Damned If You Do... posted at NoodleFood, saying, "The government had an early April Fools trick to play on honest businessmen trying to comply with financial reporting laws..."
Jeff Montgomery presents NYT: Tea Party Full Of Hypocrites? posted at Fun With Gravity, saying, "This is a post on the common -- and I hold incorrect -- criticism that those who oppose taxation should not benefit from government services."
Rational Jenn presents MiniCon! posted at Rational Jenn, saying, "If you're feeling sad about missing OCON in Vegas this year, consider spending Independence Day weekend in Atlanta with other Objectivists!"
Roderick Fitts presents Closed vs. Open Part 1: Introduction, and the Issues posted at Inductive Quest, saying, "An introductory post on the issues concerning the 1989 Peikoff/Kelley dispute, the epistemological and ethical conflicts that arose, and the question as to whether Objectivism should be construed as "open" or "closed.""
Roderick Fitts presents Part 2: The History of the Dispute, and the Closed and Open Systems posted at Inductive Quest, saying, "A post giving a brief history of the Peikoff/Kelley dispute, a presentation on the open and closed system interpretations of Objectivism, and my stance as a closed system advocate. Identifying the truth and identifying what a philosophy is are two different tasks, as we shall see."
Ron Pisaturo presents Challenges by States Against Obamacare Lack Principle posted at Ron Pisaturo's Blog, saying, "The States object to forcing people to buy insurance policies that those people don’t want to buy. But the States don’t object to forcing people to sell insurance policies that those people don’t want to sell."
Lynne Bourque presents My Reeducation posted at 3 Ring Binder, saying, "Even though it's April Fools Day, my satire is no joke."
Mike Zemack presents The "Violence" of the Dems' Health Care Reform posted at Principled Perspectives, saying, "Amit Ghate's timely essay, FORCE AND VIOLENCE: HOW THE LEFT BLURS TERMS, provides a huge assist in this post. Considering recent events, the title of his essay could read, OBAMACARE AND VIOLENCE AGAINST LAWMAKERS: HOW THE LEFT BLURS TERMS."
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Thanks for hosting, Rachel!
ReplyDeleteFun to figure it out! I've never played with HTML before! OK, time to run to the Kindergarden classroom :)
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