Craig Biddle on Egoism and Altruism in American Culture
Interview: 23 September 2009

I interviewed Craig Biddle on "Egoism and Altruism in American Culture" on 23 September 2009. Listen to or download this episode of Philosophy in Action Radio below.
I interview Craig Biddle about egoism and altruism in American culture and politics, based on his new article "The Creed of Sacrifice vs. The Land of Liberty."
Craig Biddle is the editor of The Objective Standard and the author of Loving Life: The Morality of Self-Interest and the Facts that Support It, a highly concretized, systematic introduction to Ayn Rand's ethics. He is currently writing a book, which is tentatively titled Thinking in Principles: The Science of Selfishness, about how to use one's mind in the service of one's life, liberty, and happiness.
Tags: Altruism, Charity, Christianity, Conservatism, Culture, Egoism, Ethics, Government, Politics, Rights, Self-Interest
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- Duration: 36:44
- Download: MP3 File (12.6 MB)
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About the Podcast 
- The basic thesis of the article
- Egoism versus altruism
- The ethics of altruism in our culture today
- The problem with voluntary altruism
- Altruism versus freedom
- The arguments for altruism
- Obstacles to considering egoism
- Christian advocates of free markets
Relevant Links 
- The Objective Standard: The Creed of Sacrifice vs. The Land of Liberty by Craig Biddle
- Loving Life: The Morality of Self-Interest and the Facts that Support It by Craig Biddle
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I'm Dr. Diana Brickell. I'm a philosopher specializing in the application of rational principles to the challenges of real life. I received my Ph.D in philosophy from the University of Colorado at Boulder in 2009. My book, Responsibility & Luck: A Defense of Praise and Blame, is available for purchase in paperback and Kindle. The book defends the justice of moral praise and blame of persons using an Aristotelian theory of moral responsibility, thereby refuting Thomas Nagel's "problem of moral luck."
My radio show, Philosophy in Action Radio, broadcasts live over the internet on most Sunday mornings and some Thursday evenings. On Sunday mornings, I answer questions applying rational principles to the challenges of real life in a live hour-long show. Greg Perkins of Objectivist Answers co-hosts the show. On Thursday evenings, I interview an expert guest or discuss a topic of interest.
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