Showing results by narrator "Scott R. Smith" in All Categories

In Ayn Rand and Altruism, George H. Smith calls attention to benevolence in Rand’s thinking. Indeed, Smith defends Rand’s rejection of altruism by contrasting it to benevolence. In this series of essays, originally published on Libertarianism.org and republished by The Atlas Society with permission of the author, Smith begins by establishing that Rand’s definition of altruism - “the placing of others above self, of their interests above one’s own” - is identical to the definition of altruism originated by Auguste Comte.

What can you take from a man who has nothing left to lose? When Lieutenant Jason Conrad is offered the trip of a lifetime...how could he say no? But the trip quickly turns into more than he bargained for, and Jason Conrad is in a fight for his life! At the 50th anniversary of D-Day celebration, a methodical killer continues his deadly path of revenge, and Jason is caught in his crosshairs! Can he survive?

When experienced employment attorney Scott Winslow takes on a whistle-blower case for fired energy company executive Kevin Walters, actions are set in motion that will change lives forever. Scott pursues a lawsuit alleging that his client was fired for complaining about unsafe conditions in the company's mines that endangered workers. Along the way, Scott discovers that government records were altered in the wake of an explosion that killed one mine worker and injured three others. As they search, Scott and his team discover blackmail, sanitized records, and a corporate cover-up.

Four executives, each in a personal crisis of their own making, suddenly find themselves thrown together on a sailboat in the Caribbean to embark on adventure that will change them forever. Nothing is as it seems as they wrestle with their demons and attempt to unravel the puzzle they have been given to solve together.

Successful attorney and newly elected Congressman Brian Madsen has a beautiful wife and a great career. He has done everything right. Until now. At his inaugural, a congratulatory kiss from a campaign worker leads to passionate lovemaking. He waits for guilt to find him, but instead becomes embroiled in an affair, and his fate is sealed. A single decision in a moment of passion changes Brian's life. Soon, the path he has taken leads to murder, blackmail, and mortal danger to anyone Brian turns to for assistance.

Regular people going about their usual lives and business. On a busy day, on the streets of Los Angeles, the lives of the randomly chosen will change forever. All of them are fated to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. All of them will become hostages in one of the most remarkable bank robberies of all time. Two disguised men calling themselves Mr. Abbott and Mr. Costello and speaking only in electronically altered voices take the bank, and the hostages, in broad daylight.

In the aftermath of the Chemical Wars, nature has reclaimed humanity's infrastructure. This world, lush with life - yet dangerously uninhabitable for mankind - houses the remaining population that ekes out an existence in quarantined cities anchored off the mainland. David S. Sparks awakens into the chaos of this future world, unsure of his place in a reality wildly different from his fragmented memories. As the desire to retake the planet swells, so too does the question of how. Will the same mistakes be repeated? And what is David Sparks' role in it all?

Road's End is the exciting fourth book in the Narrow Gate series. Kara and Mathew continue their quest to find the Narrow Gate, but they must first deal with a new threat and come to terms about their feelings for one another.

Kipling A. Jackson, diagnosed five years ago, refuses to let ALS become a death sentence. Jackson takes an in-depth look at the respiratory side of the disease. His wry sense of humor produces a hilarious narrative that will leave the reader feeling inspired. As Jackson shares his personal journey, he discusses why he chose to extend his life with mechanical ventilation and the tracheostomy. His story is an excellent educational tool for everyone who comes in contact with ALS.

Every family has its secrets. When Kyle Wells and his friends take an annual trip to his family’s cabin deep in the Rocky Mountains, a string of events unravel to expose what his family has kept hidden for decades. As an unexpected blizzard pounds the mountains, a friend begins to act different and seems a bit off after a strange encounter in the woods. Mysterious beings known as Exalls follow them back to the city where further chaos erupts.

From a co-founder of empowr.com comes this "Why?" story behind the massive social platform, empowr, that’s been in the making for 15 years. Learn exactly what drove the participants (founders, advisors, success coaches, and 1,000 employees, plus 100,000 alpha test users) in their gigantic moonshot project.

Seven Mountains to Aratta by B.J. Corbin provides evidence that supports Alvand Mountain in Iran as the possible landing site for Noah's Ark. According to Corbin, Alvand Mountain meets the criteria for both the biblical mountains of Ararat and the mythological Aratta mentioned in Sumerian texts. B.J. Corbin has over 30 years experience searching for Noah's Ark and has participated in four expeditions to Mount Ararat in Turkey.

The welfare state rests on the assumption that people have rights to food, shelter, health care, retirement income, and other goods provided by the government. David Kelley examines the historical origins of that assumption, and the rationale used to support it today.

Ayn Rand's philosophical novels The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged made her the most controversial author of her age. Her works have drawn millions of fans and continue to sell at a breathtaking pace. Their impact on American culture runs from libertarian politics to the self-esteem movement in psychology to the rugged individualism of Silicon Valley and the Internet. Rand also launched a movement of intellectuals committed to her philosophy of Objectivism.

The cost of sexual indiscretion is highly disproportionate to whatever momentary gain or pleasure you may derive from it. Moral and spiritual drains caused by sexual indiscretion are often gradual, and the decline is often unnoticed, until it is too late to stop the drift. God commands sexual purity, and enlightened self-interest demands it. The longer you are sexually indiscrete, the more entwined in it you become, and the more difficult it becomes for you to get out.

Nearly three billion years into the future, the solar system is a very different place. Earth is long gone, and the sun is a gray, shrunken dwarf. All that remains of humanity and conscious thought is Jonathan - the last machine.

Wouldn't it be nice if you could meet anybody and, within minutes, know quite a bit about them and even know if they are lying to you? Or perhaps you have an interview coming up and you want to know if your potential future boss is just nodding his head to be nice or if you're actually doing a great job. You can know these things. In this book, you will learn how to categorize people into personality types upon meeting them.

A private plane with a family spanning three generations disappears in the mountains. After a desperate plea for help, a major search and rescue mission is launched. Meanwhile, a hiker sets out to climb a 9,415-foot mountain on his own. He fails to return, causing his fiancée to report him lost. Another search and rescue is launched on his behalf. With help from the stratosphere, the two search missions each make unexpected discoveries, leading to a dramatic change in circumstances and ending.

In 1995, three intrepid adventure seekers travel by small sailboat and kayaks risking death in rough seas to find the Painted Cave of Santa Cruz Island.

A travel writer in need of a Halloween story decides to visit the north country of Yorkshire, where he wants to visit villages with haunted houses and to interview people who have ghost stories. Riding his bicycle northward from York, he collects photographs and stories from villagers as he cycles along. Coming to the end of his work day, the threat of a rain storm prompts him to take a back road to an obscure village, where he hopes to find lodging for the night.