Objectivist Summer Conference

I was surprised that so many people were interested in learning all about the Objectivist Summer Conference I attended from July 5 to 17, and now that I'm finally home and my blog is working properly, it’s time to spill the beans.

I went to the conference as a “working scholar” -- which meant that I went free in exchange for helping to run the conference. The work involved setting up rooms, making sure the other participants had passes to the events, and generally being an errand boy. A pretty good deal considering that the full cost probably exceeds my annual income.

I arrived in LA on the fifth and paid an outrageous amount to drive to the resort where it was being held. The place was very nice, with great facilities all around and the best breakfast I have ever had. The only problem was that a lunch at the hotel cost the equivalent of a normal five-course dinner with lobster, so I often took a cab into town with the other working scholars to try out the local cuisine instead.

On to the actual conference. The general attitude I held during the conference can best be described as “shock and awe.” As I walked down to lobby on my way to the first lecture, I casually passed by Yaron Brook, president of ARI, Dr. Gary Hull, whose lecture was my first introduction to Objectivism, Dr. John Ridpath, Dr. Andrew Bernstein, and Dr. Edwin Locke, all philosophers and lecturers whom I had been reading for the last three years. Then, if I weren’t dazed enough as it was, I heard and saw a lecture on sculpture by Mary Ann Sures, who knew Ayn Rand for many years.

The daily schedule I followed basically went like this: I would get up around seven for breakfast and usually meet fellow Objectivists from all over the world in the process, and then run to set up for my 8:30 week-long class. At ten, I would listen to the first general lecture, and then go to lunch with some of my fellow working scholars. After lunch, I would attend the second general lecture, followed by two more week-long classes. After the classes, we would either have the evening off, or some planned event, such as a banquet, a discussion panel, or a Q&A session. At night, the college-age group would get together to play parlor games (balderdash, mafia, cards, etc) stop by the bar, or go out to town. Sometime after midnight, I would come back and collapse into bed exhausted and eager for the next day.

The quality of the general lectures and week-long classes varied widely, but all of them certainly exceeded the usual mindless garbage I was used to as a liberal arts undergrad. Where I could choose optional classes, I went for anything related to economic and ethical issues, and not surprisingly, those were my favorite topics. Here are some of lectures I liked best: “Vanderbilt and American Free Enterprise” by Eric Daniels, “Capitalism: The System of the Mind” by Andrew Bernstein, “The 19th-Century Atomic War” by David Harriman, and one that I disagreed with but nevertheless found fascinating: “The Cause and Consequence of the Great Depression” by Richard Salsman. Also notable was “Nietzsche and the Nihilism of Our Times” by John Ridpath, which reminded me of an essay I wrote a year ago called “The Virtues of our Time: Collectivism, Nihilism and Pragmatism.” Of the classes I took, my favorites were “Refuting the Moral Accusations Against Capitalism” by Dr Bernstein and “Aristotle as Ethicist” by Greg Salmieri. Greg btw, is not only a budding philosopher, but plays the blues like a pro, as I witnessed for myself.

Overall, the information presented at the conference served to integrate my current knowledge of Objectivism, fill in many gaps, and provide the factual and historical context necessary to connect the abstract concepts I have been learning to reality. Listening to an Objectivist speaker present some complex topic is a unique experience because of the integrated nature of the topic they present. Whereas most university professors teach in terms of disconnected fragments and floating abstractions that must be memorized without and sometimes in opposition to reality, listening to a good Objectivist speaker absolutely requires and active and focused mind that is making a constant and conscious effort to integrate the incoming information with the rest of one’s knowledge. For example, in economics and political science, I often had to force myself to think in terms of a different reality to prevent my mind from throwing out the material being presented because of the blatant factual contradictions as well as the internal inconsistencies. This was complicated by the fact that I actually wanted to glean as much useful information from the lectures as possible, so I had to categorize the incoming information as going into “real reality” that integrated with the rest of my knowledge and the “fake reality” needed to for the exam. Listening to the lectures at the conference required an even higher level of concentration, as I could not merely memorize the information being presented, but had to perform an active process of integration and evaluation of the validity of the concepts being presented. The most complex and information-packed lectures were Dr. Peikoff’s lectures on Induction, which I found to be an exhaustive but thoroughly enjoyable experience. I have to admit that I lacked to proper background to properly understand much of the material he presented, and will have to wait for the tapes or book to more fully grasp that fascinating subject. The sleep deprivation I experienced throughout the conference certainly didn’t help, so I compensated by consuming massive amounts of hard candies to keep the blood flowing to my brain.

What else? Well, the other working scholars were fellow college students, and since most of them were leaders of their own campus Objectivist clubs, we used the occasion to discuss strategy, plans, and the hostility Objectivist groups faced on college campuses. Some of them had the fortune to go to Duke, which is not only top five in philosophy, but has not one but two prominent Objectivist professors teaching classes with overwhelming demand from students and support from the administration (backed up by large donations) -- despite strong opposition by the philosophy department. Others went to the University of Toronto, which has an Objectivist Club of 250+ members, (from the general area) publishes its own newspaper, and regularly hosts prominent speakers. Yet others went to school in Belgium, where openly advocating capitalism or Objectivism on campus can easily get you beat up or even expelled. Overall, I felt fortunate that local campus opposition to my club is restricted to tearing down and writing on fliers rather than burning them and rejecting student organization status.

In sum, the conference was an awesome experience, and the most relaxing, educational, and intensive two weeks of my life. I should add that I loved the location as well, and would love to live in southern California someday, especially if Gray Davis loses the recall. The beaches and eateries around Santa Monica were great despite the nanny lifeguards who went after me for swimming too far out, and the annoying pedestrian lights that interrupted my beachside experience with their loud beeping. You can check out the photos I took here.

Posted by David at July 31, 2003 08:08 PM | TrackBack