Benevolence

I don’t understand why conventional moralists often see benevolence and self-interest as at odds. Living–action in pursuit of life-sustaining ends, that is, of values–is a challenge, even a struggle. Success is not guaranteed. “There’s many a slip ‘twix cup and lip.” So why wouldn’t reasoning pursuers of self-interest view others similarly situated favorably? Egoists should rejoice over success stories. Examples of triumph should inspire because they demonstrate that success of all kinds is possible in this world. This is certainly the case in a positive-sum free-market society, in which entrepreneurs constantly push back the limits of scarcity. Remember what Ludwig von Mises wrote, “The fact that my fellow man wants to acquire shoes as I do, does not make it harder for me to get shoes, but easier.” In a deep sense, one person’s success is another person’s spur to succeed. Ayn Rand understood this, especially in terms of art, but in her nonfiction writing, she did not emphasize it in human relations.

We should reject the conventional refrain that if you embrace the pursuit of self-interest, at best, you are indifferent to other people’s well-being beyond the purely transactional. 

Egoists, unite! You have nothing to lose but your guilt!