Tsk tsk... you misunderstand laddie... Rand and Friedman are not science fiction authors, they are political philosophers. They, along with Adam Smith (the "invisible hand") and Jonathan Swift, should be on your required reading list.
Once you've mastered them, take a crack at Santayana- the greatest philosopher our motherland has yet produced- most famous for his astute observation that 'Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.'
If you don't know who William F. Buckley Jr is... add him to your list, but I can't imagine one of your views and interests doesn't know the man who- MUCH more than Goldwater- paved the way for Reagan.
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On Science Fiction though... I tend towards dystopian societal commentary by the likes of Bradbury (Fahrenheit 451, PLEASE tell me you've read it!), Heinlein (Stranger in a strange land), Phillip K. Dick (anything he wrote), and of course, the godfather of dystopian S.F., Jonathan Swift (again, anything he wrote.)
A less well known work of Bradbury's which is the ultimate work of Libertarian/classic liberal philosophy in literature is "The Martian Chronicles" which popularized the acronym "MYOB" though great as R.B. was, he did not originate the acronym nor the concept.
Well this summer, my dad's probably going to send me to a camp on philosophy, I've been trying to get into metaphysics for some time but I have had a chance to read up on it.
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When we've gotten sick of the burro-cratic runaround, my wife and I are wont to exclaim This is an ex parrot!
We have the complete python corpus on DVD, including the rare but wunderbar German episodes... have you seen them?
I'm impressed young lad... for a 15 year old, you have sublime taste in music and comedy!
Yes I'm a rare breed, I have one friend who shares similar tastes. My current favorite tv show is Doctor Who.
I was too in high school... and my high school only had 72 students! But all the misfits were into Python, Floyd, Dr. Who, playing Risk, etc.
Ever caught the British show Black Adder- dark, erudite humor at its finest. Start with season II or III.
Father Ted's a lot of fun too... not quite as deep, but still brilliantly done.
And course the Avengers... can't go wrong with them.
So... read any Ayn Rand or Milton Friedman?
I go back to Stoker, Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. Yes Black Adder is great, and even more so with Tom Baker(my favorite doctor).
Tsk tsk... you misunderstand laddie... Rand and Friedman are not science fiction authors, they are political philosophers. They, along with Adam Smith (the "invisible hand") and Jonathan Swift, should be on your required reading list.
Once you've mastered them, take a crack at Santayana- the greatest philosopher our motherland has yet produced- most famous for his astute observation that 'Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.'
If you don't know who William F. Buckley Jr is... add him to your list, but I can't imagine one of your views and interests doesn't know the man who- MUCH more than Goldwater- paved the way for Reagan.
-----------
On Science Fiction though... I tend towards dystopian societal commentary by the likes of Bradbury (Fahrenheit 451, PLEASE tell me you've read it!), Heinlein (Stranger in a strange land), Phillip K. Dick (anything he wrote), and of course, the godfather of dystopian S.F., Jonathan Swift (again, anything he wrote.)
A less well known work of Bradbury's which is the ultimate work of Libertarian/classic liberal philosophy in literature is "The Martian Chronicles" which popularized the acronym "MYOB" though great as R.B. was, he did not originate the acronym nor the concept.
I wrote my BA "thesis" on them.
Well this summer, my dad's probably going to send me to a camp on philosophy, I've been trying to get into metaphysics for some time but I have had a chance to read up on it.
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