RE: That’s an absurd distortion of a simple statement.
Does Ayn Rand believe in God or not?
I believe she does not.
She determined that she was an atheist as early was when she was in high school.
See here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayn_Rand#cite_note-MJones-172
Is that a distortion of her belief? Maybe you can tell me something that negates what I said...
Now, if she does not believe in God, in what sense are the moral values she espouse objectively binding on others?
All she is telling us is that her beliefs are right without telling us BY WHAT AUTHORITY they are other than to refer to her own.
Of course, she didn't. She was famous for her atheism. That did not, however, mean that she believed you could do as you please morally.
All she is telling us is that her beliefs are right without telling us BY WHAT AUTHORITY they are other than to refer to her own.
If all you know of her philosophy is what you've been told or, perhaps, read in "Atlas Shrugged", I could see why you might think that.