[Selfish]

Well, i'm into my 4th week of college here at UCF (university of central florida), and I have to say i'm incredibly bummed that the Objectivist club seems to have died. I emailed the 'founder', a guy named 'Luther Setzer', and he told me that it had basically 'evolved' into the Secular Student Alliance. This sucks! I'm going to join the philosphy club, but i'm gritting my teeth in anticipation of the mindsets i'm going to meet there. I'v been meeting people left and right here, throwing my own parties, dating, and attending various clubs, all in hopes of meeting some like-minded people, and so far, all i'v found is maybe one or two people that have read Anthem and liked it. Maybe it's just my school in general, but to me, it seems like the American mindset is becoming (or has become) incredibly socialist (or just amoral?). I'v tried numerous times to explain Objectivism and Individualism too my friends, peers, and all the random people I meet, but no one really gets it. In fact, most of the time people will go as far as to vehemently disagree.

Sorry if this post is a little ranty, I'm just dieing for some intellectual contact with a like-minded person. So many aspects of egoism i'd love to debate and discuss..but with someone who actually takes a rational approach.

Not to mention this damn school is like University of Catholic Florida...

BLAH!

[A.West]

Hi,
I graduated from UCF in '91. If your experience is anything like mine, you should get used to not meeting anyone interested in Objectivism there. Most people lived off campus, worked in their off time, etc, and weren't real active with many campus activities. I studied business, and my peers weren't much interested in reading any novels at all. There were some smart people there, but they just weren't intellectual.

Back then there was a small Orlando area social group that met occasionally, and Stuart Daw had a Tampa Bay Objectivist group at his offices. Occasionally an ARI speaker would lecture at U of F, and I'd drive up there.

Put in an advertisement or write an essay for the school newspaper and find out if any of the other 41,000 students at UCF are thinking the same thing as you are. There probably are at least a couple.

I never noticed any Catholicism on campus.

[Quantum Mechanic]

Do what I did. Start your own club!

[ZiggyKD]

There's a very well organized o'ist club a couple hours north of you at UF: aynrandclub.com.

[stephen_speicher]

ZiggyKD, on Oct 17 2004, 11:20 AM, said:

There's a very well organized o'ist club a couple hours north of you at UF: aynrandclub.com.

That is a very nicely stylized web site. Let us know when the t-shirts are available if they are at all like the style of the site.

One thing, though. The "Overview" states "Ayn Rand named her philosophy 'Objectivism' because it proceeds from the axiom that 'existence exists' ..." While it is true that "existence exists" lies at the foundation of Objectivism, the wording "proceeds from the axiom" might be taken to mean that the philosophy is then deduced. Of course, it is not, and the philosophy was developed inductively. And, as the continuation on the web site correctly implies, the philosophy is called Objectivism because of the essential epistemological focus on her unique notion of objectivity, the adherence to reality by following the method of reason.

[ZiggyKD]

I agree, really nicely done web site. UF's club has been around longer than mine, which I am currently president of. I get the impression, from their site, that they have a solid organization down there.

As for the t-shirts Stephen, why don't you contact them yourself?

http://www.aynrandclub.com/contact.htm

[britt]

We are now selling t-shirts: http://www.aynrandcl...om/purchase.php

-b

[DarkWaters]

ZiggyKD, on Oct 17 2004, 01:20 PM, said:

There's a very well organized o'ist club a couple hours north of you at UF: aynrandclub.com.

Is this club still active? Are there any active Objectivist Clubs in Gainesville, FL? I will be visiting a Professor at the University of Florida this summer and I will most likely be bored socially.

[Alessa36]

Selfish, on Oct 7 2004, 12:49 PM, said:

Sorry if this post is a little ranty, I'm just dieing for some intellectual contact with a like-minded person. So many aspects of egoism i'd love to debate and discuss..but with someone who actually takes a rational approach.

Not to mention this damn school is like University of Catholic Florida...

BLAH!

selfish....use spell check on all your documents...dying <--saying this to help you be at your best.

I understand. Being an objectivist can be a lonely world. Most of the characters in AR books have few friends and even less acquaintances. Perhaps the best you can hope for is to practice your understanding of OBJ and maybe even teach a few students how to think. Good Luck.

[Geoff]

Hey Selfish, I attend Full Sail which is right down the street from UCF. I just recently moved to Florida, so Im still learning my way around, but like you, I have not run in to any Objectivists yet. My school schedule is pretty hectic, but Id love to sit and talk sometime.

[Geoff]

I just now realized you originally posted this back in 2004. Guess I should pay attention more.

[Old Soul]

DarkWaters, on Feb 25 2007, 08:21 PM, said:

Is this club still active? Are there any active Objectivist Clubs in Gainesville, FL? I will be visiting a Professor at the University of Florida this summer and I will most likely be bored socially.

dated a girl from Gainesville, FL. From that experience, I'd guess that there's not an Objectivist Club for 1000 miles. It didn't last long...haha

[softwareNerd]

DarkWaters, on Feb 25 2007, 11:21 PM, said:

Is this club still active?

That site doesn't seem to be up and running. However, you might try checking http://grove.ufl.edu...forum/index.php
to see if you can get in touch with some of the people from that club.