Speaking Events
LOGIC’s speaking events help to expose a wider audience to Objectivism and the application of Objectivist principles to current events. Although we generally draw from ARI’s Speakers Bureau, we occasionally endorse other speakers who are in line with Objectivist principles, such as Phelim McAleer and Ann McElhinney, the creators of Mine Your Own Business (a documentary exposing the dark side of the environmentalist organization Greenpeace), who held a Q & A session after we screened the film.
All of our events are free and open to the general public.
Speaking events--whether lectures on fundamental philosophical topics, panels on contemporary events, or debates on contentious issues--place LOGIC on the map. Pursuant to our events, we’ve been interviewed by radio, television, and print media, including most notably, an hour-long segment on the Al Rantel Show (KABC) for Unveiling the Danish Cartoons in March 2006.
Because Ayn Rand’s ideas are so revolutionary, Objectivist speaking events are often controversial and therefore receive a great deal of attention. This helps us to bring Objectivism to the forefront, making it possible to influence a broader audience and ultimately to shape the values of our culture.
In April 2007, we hosted one of our most successful events--Totalitarian Islam’s Threat to the West--a panel with world-renowned speakers Dr. Daniel Pipes, Dr. Wafa Sultan, and Dr. Yaron Brook, which ARI has published as part of their annual lecture series. The panel was attended by a full house of over 500 individuals, including students and general community members from across Southern California.
Other notable events put on by LOGIC have included:
- Immigration: Let Them In or Keep Them Out?
- Religion vs. Morality
- Destroying Islamic Totalitarianism: The West’s Moral Imperative
- Capitalism: The Only Moral Politico-Economic System
Because of the popularity and success of these events, we plan to expand our annual speaking series to include as many as nine events each academic year, including topics such as universal health care, affirmative action, abortion, intelligent design, animal rights, and global warming, among others.
Atlas Scholarship Program
Since 2006, LOGIC has distributed over 1500 free copies of Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged, The Fountainhead, and Anthem to UCLA students and event attendees. Most Objectivists’ first glimpse into the realm of rational philosophy began with reading Ayn Rand’s fiction. The Atlas Scholarship Program makes it possible for more people--and most crucially, more students--to read her life-changing books.
In conjunction with our book give-away, we promote ARI’s annual essay contests ( www.aynrand.org/contests ) to motivate serious philosophical thought about the novels.
Distribution of The Undercurrent
The Undercurrent is a student-run Objectivist newsletter. Its content is written primarily by (and for) college students across the country, with additional articles from the Ayn Rand Institute op-ed program and other writers. Since Fall 2006, LOGIC has purchased and distributed close to 1000 copies of The Undercurrent to UCLA students.
In coming years, we plan to make The Undercurrent a “household name” at UCLA, increasing its prominence and influence on university culture.
