The Greater Good – Not!
By Randy Gage
Zhannur deduces correctly that the words I choose are meant to shake people up and cause them to do some serious thought. My work is not designed for the herd, but critical thinkers. (A while back I was approached to write a “— for Dummies” book. I declined, on the grounds that I have no desire to write for dummies.
Zhannur feels though that I am undervaluing the meaning of living for the greater good. I have a hard time with that, because “greater good” seems to be such an impossibility, kind of like “a thoughtful response from President Bush.” The two are so diametrically opposite I have a hard time reconciling them.
For Zhannur to live for the greater good is not meant to sacrifice your own happiness. But rather multiply and grow together and individually. Ayn Rand has some brilliant insights on this in an interview she did a long time ago with Mike Wallace. Watch it here.
If I go along with the conceptual idea of a greater good, I will still say that it comes from each person living their life by having a higher purpose of their own happiness. And everyone making sure their own needs are met, is what ultimately makes the world a safe, livable and prosperous place.
-RG














