I think it's very important to continue to have a word like "selfish" around. It is a very accurate word, meaning to put oneself ahead of others and we need to have a word that encompasses this concept. When the word "selfish" is used correctly, it is not only about other's interest. In fact, it's completely without regard to others, that's the point. It IS all about you, by definition. It's about doing what YOU want WITHOUT REGARD TO OTHERS and is completely without relevance to other people. I'm starting to sound like a broken record here.
If you want to retire the word entirely, reclaiming it is not the way to go about it. But the word selfish is not just about the value of others' well-being, it is specifically about one's own well-being.
The point that I'm making is that behaving in one's own self interest is NOT inherently bad, but the word "selfish" fundamentally excludes all acts of self-interest that are not done "without regard to others".
I'm not a fan of Ann Rand at all, I think she's pompous and full of shit.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 7/3/09 06:46 pm (UTC)From:If you want to retire the word entirely, reclaiming it is not the way to go about it. But the word selfish is not just about the value of others' well-being, it is specifically about one's own well-being.
The point that I'm making is that behaving in one's own self interest is NOT inherently bad, but the word "selfish" fundamentally excludes all acts of self-interest that are not done "without regard to others".
I'm not a fan of Ann Rand at all, I think she's pompous and full of shit.