I believev in the virtue of selfishness. Altruism is a lie. All actions are at their core driven by selfishness. Altruism is an attempt to deny the truth that is human selfishness. For example: Christians commit "selfless" acts in the hopes that they will go to heaven or receive better awards in heaven. If you were to tell the average alrtuist that they will never see any reward, returns, or recognition-in this world or the next-in any way from their "charitable" actions, then I would submit that they will not be so willing to commit these acts.
There is an alternative to this hollow, self-deceiving philosophy: Objectivism. Note that my explanation of what objectivism is, just as my explanation of altruism, are based on my own perceptions and experiences. These explanations might not match the textbook definitions of these terms, but they are no less valid to me. Objectivism is the philosophy of embracing the selfish nature. Why embrace the selfish nature? It is because when you embrace that man is by his nature selfish, you realize that you are free to pursue your own interests and, by extension, so are others. It is of course important to realize that if your actions damage others or impede their own pursuit of happiness, then they are immoral and unacceptable. I am not proposing immorality. I am proposing that selfishness itself is not immoral. It is, in fact, a good thing. I feel no obligation to my fellow man. At first glance this may sound cruel, but the advantage of this is that I also expect no charity of my fellow man. Now I am free to pursue my own wishes without worry, and so is my neighbor, as long as neither of us infringes upon the other. Charity itself is not a bad thing and, under this objectivist system, charity is given with the purest of motivations. Acts of charity, assistance, and the like are given simply because of the genuine desire to do something charitable. There is the possibility that you may gain something yourself from the act of charity, but it is not expected.
With the establishment of this principle, a government or society would not need to rely on coersion or use of force to take from those who have and give to those who have not. Altruism-that dangerous philosophy-is the source of the welfare system we have in thr United States and other parts of the world today. While many may like the ideas of welfare, charity, and giving to those in need, I am opposed with taking from someone else to achieve those things. The ends do not justify the means. Stealing the property of others is always wrong, no matter what charitable cause it might be for.
We must realize that no ones is obligated to acts of charity, abolish the philosophy of altrusim, and end the morally wrong practice of theft through taxation. In the place of this system, when no longer faced with forcible deductions from their earnings, people will be more inclined to give to charity because they want to and because they are no longer required to. They have more money because of less taxation, and they have more willingness to give.