D.C. discussion about Ayn Rand and Objectivism

The Atlas Society has announced the following upcoming event:

The Atlas Society, the center for Objectivism, along with the Cato Institute, Institute for Human Studies, and Students for Liberty, will sponsor “An Evening Discussion about Ayn Rand and Objectivism.”
The event will be held on Wednesday, July 30, 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm at Cato. The address is 1000 Massachusetts Ave N.W., Washington, D.C., 20001. Refreshments will be served.
David Kelley, founder and senior scholar of The Atlas Society, and William Thomas, director of programs, will be speaking in the F.A. Hayek auditorium to Koch Fellows and other interns who are in Washington for the summer. But our friends and supporters in the D.C. area or any who happen to be in town that day are welcome to attend as well.
If you’d like to register–we’d like to get a count for the refreshment order!–you can call us at 202-AYN-RAND (296-7263) or email us at tas@atlassociety.org.
The program will be:
David Kelley, Moral Individualism
Individualism is the belief in the primacy of the individual rather than the group. It is the morality of independence, autonomy, and the pursuit of happiness-as against the collectivist demand for conformity and sacrifice. Kelley will discuss Ayn Rand’s innovative analysis and defense of moral individualism.
William Thomas, Objectivism for Liberty
Libertarianism is a political coalition based in the political defense of individual rights and the economics of laisser-faire. But politics and economics depend on more foundational issues in ethics and epistemology. How can you respond economically to environmentalists deeply committed to the intrinsic value of untrammeled nature? How can you respond politically to police-state advocates who hold that the President’s judgment on matters of national security is authoritative? Thomas will argue that the core ethical and epistemological ideas of Objectivism (reason and rational-self-interest) need to take solid root in the culture if we are to win the battle for individual liberty.
TAS Executive Director Ed Hudgins will moderate and the presentations will be followed by a question and answer session.