The Ayn Rand Institute Podcast

PODCAST · society

The Ayn Rand Institute Podcast

The Ayn Rand Institute Podcast explores pressing cultural issues from the perspective of Rand’s philosophy, Objectivism.

  1. 300

    Marketing AI Without Empowering Resentment

    The post Marketing AI Without Empowering Resentment appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  2. 299

    What It Takes to Learn a Philosophy

    The post What It Takes to Learn a Philosophy appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  3. 298

    What People Get Wrong About Evil and the Iran War

    The post What People Get Wrong About Evil and the Iran War appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  4. 297

    Why Is Israel Blamed for the Iran War?

    The post Why Is Israel Blamed for the Iran War? appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  5. 296

    The Humiliating Iran Ceasefire Deal

    The post The Humiliating Iran Ceasefire Deal appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  6. 295

    Artemis II Is Inspiring – but NASA Is Holding Back Space Exploration

    The post Artemis II Is Inspiring – but NASA Is Holding Back Space Exploration appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  7. 294

    Why Billionaires Don’t Owe California Anything

    The post Why Billionaires Don’t Owe California Anything appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  8. 293

    Trump Is Fighting for American Freedom Overseas While Killing It at Home

    The post Trump Is Fighting for American Freedom Overseas While Killing It at Home appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  9. 292

    Rubio’s Mystical and Racist View of the West is Anti-Civilization

    The post Rubio’s Mystical and Racist View of the West is Anti-Civilization appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  10. 291

    Anthropic vs. Trump: The Moral Responsibility of Tech Companies

    The post Anthropic vs. Trump: The Moral Responsibility of Tech Companies appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  11. 290

    America Responds to Decades of Iranian Aggression

    The post America Responds to Decades of Iranian Aggression appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  12. 289

    Choosing Life: An Interview with ‘The Green Prince’ Mosab Hassan Yousef

    The post Choosing Life: An Interview with ‘The Green Prince’ Mosab Hassan Yousef appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  13. 288

    How the SCOTUS Tariff Decision Helps Slow the Advance of Authoritarianism

    The post How the SCOTUS Tariff Decision Helps Slow the Advance of Authoritarianism appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  14. 287

    Ayn Rand, Immigrant: The Story of Her Journey to America

    The post Ayn Rand, Immigrant: The Story of Her Journey to America appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  15. 286

    Is Trump Distinctively Responsible for the Rise of Political Violence?

    The post Is Trump Distinctively Responsible for the Rise of Political Violence? appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  16. 285

    Fear of Progress: The Quest To End Autonomous Driving

    The post Fear of Progress: The Quest To End Autonomous Driving appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  17. 284

    Values Are Made, Not Found: Watch Gregory Salmieri’s Talk on “Conceiving Values”

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOtmQv3O7T8 Podcast audio: It is common to think of values as things we “discover” about ourselves — pre-packaged preferences waiting somewhere deep inside. We speak, for example, of “discovering our passion” or of finally realizing “what we were meant to do,” as if these priorities had been there all along. On this view, valuing is automatic: we simply respond to our needs, desires, or emotions. In his 2025 Objectivist Summer Conference talk, titled “Conceiving Values,” Gregory Salmieri offers a different account. Drawing on Ayn Rand’s distinctive view, he argues that valuing is not passive or instinctive. It is an active, cognitive achievement — something we must choose, learn, and practice. Values, Salmieri explains, are goals within an ongoing process of self-sustaining action. Other organisms act to preserve themselves, but only human beings can conceptually identify and plan out their values. To concretize this process, Salmieri turns to the work of creators.  An architect does not discover their buildings ready-made in the world; a novelist does not stumble upon finished stories; each must actively conceive a guiding idea and gradually give it concrete form. Likewise, valuing involves choosing long-range commitments that give direction to one’s actions and define the course of one’s life. Topics covered in Salmieri’s talk include: Conventional view of values vs. Objectivism’s; Values and life; Conceptual values in human beings; Knowledge and goals in valuing; Q&A. This talk was recorded live on July 5th in Boston, MA, as part of the 2025 Objectivist Summer Conference, and is available on The Ayn Rand Institute Podcast stream.  Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Watch archived podcasts here.

  18. 283

    Texas A&M’s Ban on Plato: Anti-”Woke” Censorship?

    The post Texas A&M’s Ban on Plato: Anti-”Woke” Censorship? appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  19. 282

    Does Success Require Sacrifice?

    The post Does Success Require Sacrifice? appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  20. 281

    Renee Good Killing and Tribalism in America

    The post Renee Good Killing and Tribalism in America appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  21. 280

    Iranian Theocracy on the Brink? Why Protesters Deserve Our Moral Support

    The post Iranian Theocracy on the Brink? Why Protesters Deserve Our Moral Support appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  22. 279

    Enlightenment on Trial: The Real Lessons of the American and French Revolutions

    The post Enlightenment on Trial: The Real Lessons of the American and French Revolutions appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  23. 278

    The Constitution Ignored: Trump’s War on Venezuela

    The post The Constitution Ignored: Trump’s War on Venezuela appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  24. 277

    Newton Versus Descartes on the Exactness of Mathematics

    The post Newton Versus Descartes on the Exactness of Mathematics appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  25. 276

    Steven Pinker’s Weak Defense of Enlightenment Values vs. Religion

    The post Steven Pinker’s Weak Defense of Enlightenment Values vs. Religion appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  26. 275

    Re-release: Christmas Is About Joy, Not Guilt

    The post Re-release: Christmas Is About Joy, Not Guilt appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  27. 274

    RFK Jr.’s Irrational Anti-Vaccine Policies: Interview with Dr. Amesh Adalja

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lI3qhwVi1Eg Podcast audio: In this episode of the Ayn Rand Institute podcast, Samantha Watkins interviews Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease physician and a senior scholar at the Center for Health Security at Johns Hopkins University, about the alarming trend of anti-vaccine irrationality coming from government leaders. Topics include: The state of vaccine science Hepatitis B vaccine Covid vaccine The cause of conspiracism The real-world impact of conspiracism A healthy culture’s approach to vaccine science Resources:  “A Pro-Freedom Approach to Infectious Disease” by Onkar Ghate, in which he shares ARI’s view of the role of government with respect to infectious disease This episode was recorded on December 15, 2025, and posted on December 18, 2025. Image Credit: Alex Wong / via Getty Images

  28. 273

    How Drug Boats Could Be Used to Rationalize an Unjust War with Venezuela

    The post How Drug Boats Could Be Used to Rationalize an Unjust War with Venezuela appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  29. 272

    Spinoza: A Hero of the Enlightenment

    The post Spinoza: A Hero of the Enlightenment appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  30. 271

    ICE Raids vs. Rule of Law: Interviewing Institute for Justice’s Josh Windham

    The post ICE Raids vs. Rule of Law: Interviewing Institute for Justice’s Josh Windham appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  31. 270

    Tucker Carlson, Nick Fuentes, Heritage, and Conservatism’s Moral Decay

    The post Tucker Carlson, Nick Fuentes, Heritage, and Conservatism’s Moral Decay appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  32. 269

    Mamdani’s Victory: How Bad is it For America?

    The post Mamdani’s Victory: How Bad is it For America? appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  33. 268

    Trump’s Un-American, Unconstitutional Tariff Scheme

    The post Trump’s Un-American, Unconstitutional Tariff Scheme appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  34. 267

    Saving the Enlightenment

    The post Saving the Enlightenment appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  35. 266

    Mamdani’s Socialist War on Gifted Kids

    The post Mamdani’s Socialist War on Gifted Kids appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  36. 265

    The Origin of Life, Agency & Purpose: Terrence Deacon’s Theory

    The post The Origin of Life, Agency & Purpose: Terrence Deacon’s Theory appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  37. 264

    Do Nobel Prize-Winning Economists Get Why Nations Fail?

    Podcast audio: This talk by Robertas Bakula was recorded live on July 2nd in Boston, MA as part of the 2025 Objectivist Summer Conference and is available on the Ayn Rand Institute Podcast stream. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Watch archived podcasts here.

  38. 263

    How Friendship Can Be Selfish

    The post How Friendship Can Be Selfish appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  39. 262

    Integrating Science and Free Will

    The post Integrating Science and Free Will appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  40. 261

    Defending Embryo Screening from Irrational Opposition

    The post Defending Embryo Screening from Irrational Opposition appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  41. 260

    Principles of a Proper Foreign Policy

    The post Principles of a Proper Foreign Policy appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  42. 259

    The Injustice of the New Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Deal

    The post The Injustice of the New Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Deal appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  43. 258

    Understanding “Woke” Ideology: Books by Yascha Mounk and Chris Rufo

    The post Understanding “Woke” Ideology: Books by Yascha Mounk and Chris Rufo appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  44. 257

    It’s Up to You: Making Choices

    This talk by Steven Warden was recorded live on July 3rd in Boston, MA as part of the 2025 Objectivist Summer Conference and is available on the Ayn Rand Institute Podcast stream. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. Watch archived podcasts here.

  45. 256

    Is Israel Committing Genocide in Gaza?

    The post Is Israel Committing Genocide in Gaza? appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  46. 255

    Patrick Deneen and the Right’s War on Freedom

    The Post-Liberal Right threatens to roll back American liberty. The post Patrick Deneen and the Right’s War on Freedom appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  47. 254

    What Is Western Civilization?

    The Enlightenment, not Christianity, is the key to the West. The post What Is Western Civilization? appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  48. 253

    The Injustice of Recognizing a Palestinian State

    The recognition of a Palestinian state betrays good and rewards evil. The post The Injustice of Recognizing a Palestinian State appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  49. 252

    Trump vs. Kimmel: The Tribal Weaponization of the FCC against Free Speech

    Intimidating broadcasters with the “public interest” standard is a worse abridgement of free speech than censorship. The post Trump vs. Kimmel: The Tribal Weaponization of the FCC against Free Speech appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

  50. 251

    Trump’s Anti-Capitalist Control Over Businesses

    Business leaders need to stand up for themselves before it's too late. The post Trump’s Anti-Capitalist Control Over Businesses appeared first on New Ideal - Reason | Individualism | Capitalism.  

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ABOUT THIS SHOW

The Ayn Rand Institute Podcast explores pressing cultural issues from the perspective of Rand’s philosophy, Objectivism.

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Ayn Rand Institute

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