The Binary Circumstance

From the New York Times [reg. req.]:

LEXINGTON, Ky., March 22 — W. L. Carter knew there was something fishy going on when he went to his lawyers’ office a few years ago to pick up his settlement check for the heart damage he had sustained from taking the diet drug combination fen-phen.

The check was, for starters, much smaller than he had expected. And his own lawyers threatened to retaliate against him if he ever told anyone, including his family, how much he had been paid. “You will be fined $100,000, you will go to jail and you will be sued,” Mr. Carter recalled them saying.

Mr. Carter was right to have been suspicious. The lawyers defrauded their clients, a state judge has ruled in a civil case, when they settled fen-phen lawsuits on behalf of 440 of them for $200 million but kept the bulk of the money for themselves. Legal experts said the fraud might be one of the biggest and most brazen in legal history.

As Ayn Rand asked, “Who will protect us from our protectors?”

Over the years I’ve been involved in a number of class action lawsuits pertaining to the stock market. There are always a lot of forms to fill out. Time goes by and in the end I’ve never received more than a few dollars from any of it. Now, when I receive those forms in the mail from law firms, I don’t even waste my time filling them out.

I just finished Quantum Reality: Beyond the New Physics by Nick Herbert and it really stretches the imagination. I’m not prepared to write a real review of it right now, and might not be for a long time, so here’s just a small sample:

Physics theories are not eternal. When quantum theory joins the ranks of phlogiston, caloric, and the luminiferous ether in the physics junkyard, Bell’s theorem will still be valid. Because it’s based on facts, Bell’s theorem is here to stay.

Impossible Worlds

Bell’s theorem is an important tool for reality research because it enables folks who create imaginary worlds confidently and to reject millions of impossible worlds at a single glance. Bell’s theorem tells you right away: “If it’s local, it’s hokum.” (pg 227)

[…]

The phenomenon in this hypothetical world, whether the rainbow moves or not, is completely local: Suzie’s rainbow doesn’t move when Joe changes places. However, the world’s reality–the array of little dots that make up both rainbows–is non-local: Suzie’s dots change instantly whenever Joe moves his chair.

Such a non-local contextual world, in which stable rainbows are woven upon a faster-than-light fabric, is an example of the kind of world permitted by Bell’s theorem. A universe that displays local phenomena built upon a non-local reality is the only sort of world consistent with known facts and Bell’s proof. Superluminal rainbow world could be the kind of world we live in. (pg. 229-230)

What I find very interesting is that if physcists claim this is true, they are claiming it exists. If it exists it becomes the metaphysical foundation for Objectivism, though it does not allow for “objects” as people usually understand them.

It has no impact on the basic premise of my web site. The Binary Circumstance still holds as model for existence. Superluminal communcation at the subatomic level either exists or it doesn’t. Bell’s Theorem says it does, but there is still some debate.

It’s fascinating, though, and I’m ready to read more on the subject. It left me with more questions than answers.

KCET in Los Angeles produced a short video about Ayn Rand’s years in Hollywood working as an extra, a sceenwriter and even in wardrobe.

Unless you’ve read her biographies, you might not know that’s were she got her start soon after fleeing communist Russia for the freedom of this country. It discusses her love of film and writing as well as her belief that they could be used as a tool to promote her ideas. The video includes many old photographs and relies heavily on interview footage with Michael Berliner, former director of the Ayn Rand Instutute.

They also have a blog called Life and Times Blog which has an article about the segment. In their links section they linked to my article, Paul Varnell: Ayn Rand and Homosexuality

Check out the video on their site. It’s only about eight minutes and provides a lot of factual information about her life. (requires RealPlayer) For those unfamiliar with her life, it’s a great introduction to a fascinating, brilliant woman.

Government “help” to business is just as disastrous as government persecution… the only way a government can be of service to national prosperity is by keeping its hands off. - Ayn Rand

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