6 ms·

Rand's education was made possible by communists - both monetarily and also by fighting for the right of women to enter higher education. Always deliciously iro

• thephyber 6y ago
  This is an important point and should not be downvoted. It's not possible to accurately argue "she would have received a better/more efficient education in a free market society" because that's a counterfactual. In fact, it's probably more likely that she dedicated her whole life to overreacting against socialist economics in her writing precisely because she had been exposed to Stalinism/communism.
  • nickff 6y ago
    I'm having some difficulty understanding your statement: >"It's not possible to accurately argue "she would have received a better/more efficient education in a free market society" because that's a counterfactual." Do you mean to say that nobody can ever argue that a historical counterfactual might have been preferable? This would seem to be a rationalization of history, through a refusal to consider alternatives.
    • thephyber 6y ago
      Perhaps I can rephrase: it's not possible to test the counterfactual, therefore to know the accuracy of the statement. Obviously anyone can make any statement/argument, but without the ability to verify it, it doesn't carry much weight.