John Lewis will be the first speaker of the Front Range Objectivist Supper Talks on Saturday, January 31, 2004 in Denver, Colorado. FROST is planning to host these supper talks six times a year.
Topic: “The Failure of the Homeland Defense: Lessons from History”
With the creation of a cabinet-level Department of Homeland Defense, America has accepted a permanent, institutionalized state of siege on its own soil. But is this the correct strategy? This lecture examines several cases from history, asking what has happened when great nations, facing attack, have turned to defense rather than offense. The results are unequivocal: the only defense is a good offense. America should project her military beyond her borders, into the enemy’s homeland, and should leave her cities free and open, as demonstrations of the power and success of freedom.
But this strategic lesson depends upon deeper factors. A nation must understand, and focus on, its self-interest; the military must then be allowed to win. A nation under attack must not exempt those who start a war from its consequences; the psychological will of the enemy to continue the fight must be destroyed along with its physical resources. There is a deep connection between intellectual clarity, moral certainty, and the offensive strategy needed to defeat a ruthless enemy. Only Ayn Rand’s philosophy of Objectivism provides the moral foundations needed to succeed against the threats we face today.
Biography
Dr. John Lewis is Assistant Professor of History at Ashland University, Ashland, Ohio. He is holder of an Anthem Fellowship for Objectivist Scholarship. He is also active as an Objectivist speaker and writer, publishing in The Intellectual Activist and lecturing at conferences. His Ph.D. is in Classics from the University of Cambridge, and his B.A. in History from the University of Rhode Island. He has taught Ancient History at the University of London, and is a visiting scholar at Rice University and Bowling Green State University.
Details
The talk will be hosted at the West Woods Golf Club at 6655 Quaker, Arvada, Colorado (a suburb of Denver, Colorado) and will cost $45.00 per person. (The price is $35 for students.)
There will be a social hour beginning at 6:00 pm, followed by buffet dinner at 7:00 and John’s talk at 8:00.
Anyone is welcome (even non-Objectivists who you think might be interested). Please contact Lin Zinser for details at lin(at)zinser.com or snail-mail your reservation and check to 8700 Dover Court, Arvada, CO 80005. You may also call her at 303-431-2525.
*** Important Note: Please RSVP to Lin Zinser by January 25th, as she needs to order the dinners in advance. ***