Objectivism is a philosophy developed by Ayn Rand that encompasses
positions on metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, politics, and
aesthetics.
Objectivism holds that there is a mind-independent reality, that
individuals are in contact with this reality through sensory
perception, that they gain knowledge by processing the data of
perception using reason or "non-contradictory identification", that the
proper moral purpose of one's life is the pursuit of one's own
happiness or "rational self-interest", and that the only social system
consistent with such a morality is laissez-faire capitalism.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Objectivist_philosophy
Three Forms of Popular Criticism
1. Rand's ideas are often supported with great passion or derided with
great disgust, with little in between. Some of this comes from Rand's
own all-or-nothing, take-it-or-leave-it approach to her work. She
warned her readers that, "If you agree with some tenets of Objectivism,
but disagree with others, do not call yourself an Objectivist; give
proper authorship for the parts you agree with - and then indulge any
flights of fancy you wish, on your own."
