By Craig Biddle
"Individualism or collectivism—which of these ideas is correct? Which has the facts on its side? Individualism does, and we can see this at every level of philosophic thought, from ethics (the nature of value and proper human action), to epistemology (the nature and means of knowledge), to metaphysics (the fundamental nature of reality). Consider these in turn..."
".....As Ayn Rand, the great advocate of individualism, demonstrated, individualism is morally correct because individuals are in fact morally ends in themselves, not means to the ends of others. Morality, Rand observed, is “a code of values to guide man’s choices and actions—the choices and actions that determine the purpose and the course of his life.” The purpose of morality—the very reason man needs it—Rand showed, is to provide individuals with principled guidance so that they can identify and pursue life-serving values (e.g., careers, friendships, recreation, liberty), sustain their lives, and achieve personal happiness. We’re not born with knowledge of how to live and prosper, nor do we gain such knowledge automatically, nor do we act on it automatically if we do gain it (as evidenced by all the miserable people in the world). If we want to live and be happy, we must discover and embrace rational, life-serving moral principles, and we must choose to uphold and act on them consistently across the years and decades of our lives. This is why morality exists and what morality is for: to guide individuals in living and loving life."
