She never actually used the term practicalist, but disliked pragmatists for the very reason you pointed out.
I got that in a collection of her essays called "Capitalism - the Unknown Ideal".
I like Ayn Rand from a purely theoretical standpoint. It is hard to assail her position. It's one of those things that you can't really see the errors of her viewpoint until you see it put into action. It just doesn't always work exactly like it seems it should.
OTOH, the one thing that she wrote that I firmly believe is that EVERYONE (and literally everyone) does what they do out of self interest. This seems odd, when you consider an altruist. But as she pointed out an altruist is an altruist because it makes them feel good to be altruistic....hence, self interest.
Interesting stuff, but not much to put into everyday use. Or perhaps it is. In Mexico, they have a contractual agreement that is based on self interest. It's called the "Shotgun". When you enter a partnership, there is a clause called the shotgun that allows either partner to name a shotgun price per share. This price can be either a sale or purchase price. Therefore, if you want to buy out your partner, you'd better name a price he'll sell for. Otherwise, you may find your partner buying you out - and you don't have an option to reconsider, because you named the price. An practical way to deal with self interest.
I think you're correct with your lumper/splitter analogy. I'm more a lumper. Too many common themes in life for me to constantly identify all unique qualities. However, I do enjoy looking at some of the unique qualities of items because they are what differentiate things.........and, as such, should always merit some consideration. |
