Once upon a time in a parallel universe, lived a man named Galt who knew both Smith and Jones. He came to lecture them at the hospital, where both men were in rehab for their injuries.

 

"Gentlemen," said Galt "have you learned anything?"
"I should have been quieter creeping through that window" said Smith as he hobbled through his exercises.
"I should have struck that bastard harder- and before he could shoot me" said Jones, adjusting his morphine drip.

 

"Check your premises", said Galt. "Neither of you have applied your philosophy. Jones applied it selectively and Smith applied it incompletely. Jones ignored his heirarchy of values, applying the virtue of justice without also applying the virtue of rationality. He struck back as he was morally entitled to, without considering the context and consequences. Morally, there is no failure when one is forced to surrender a value to another man. It is no moral failure to submit to a killers gun. The only moral failure is to surrender your person, your mind: To excuse evil, to allow it to justify itself, to obfuscate it. You have the moral right to defend yourself against all initiation but not a moral obligation to do so. Philosophy is a tool for guidance- it serves you. You do not serve it. Next time, carry a gun as Smith did. Or run. Or surrender. Only never allow a thief to convince you that he has the right and you are selfish for wanting to keep your own wealth. Defend your values to the best of your ability- but remember that your highest value is your life."
Then Galt turned to Smith, and his green eyes shone.

 

"Jones may be pitied, but you should be damned. You have not applied your philosophy beyond the individual. There's an entire branch of Philosophy you have ignored: politics. Politics is the study of the interaction of men. You've evaded the fact that the principle of individual rights applies to all men- not just to you. The men you murdered posessed rights just as much as you do- and when you crept through their windows to kill you were a greater villain than any of them. You could have tied them up. They were no threat to you in that moment. You violated their property rights by breaking and entering, then you murdered when it was not necessary. They had every right to shoot you in defense of their home. What justification did you give? They were the same gang as the man who accosted you? Is that a reason? Would it have been a sufficient if they were merely the same family, his co-workers or the same race? Would you be justified in killing every member of the human species in self-protection because one of their nuumber once accosted you? You acted on a premise of collective guilt. You are not the police. If, while you were creeping through windows, the wife of one of them attacked you in defense of her husband, would you have been justified in killing her in 'self-defense'? Would you presume the right to act in retaliation against her retaliation in response to your retaliation to her husband's retaliation to your retaliation against his friend's initiation? This is why the study of politics is necessary. Smith & Jones, you should have worked together as rational men to clear this neighborhood of thugs. You should have worked to devise a system of cooperation so that you could subordinate retalitory force to objective rules. Instead, you applied the principle as individuals in a wanton way and you've both suffered. Jones, you will heal- in fact, here comes Doctor Hendricks now. "

 

The kindly doctor appeared, kneeling at Jones' side.
"Your wound, at least, is physical but not spiritual" said Galt, and Jones winced as Hendrick's tested the leg.
Then Galt turned to Smith again, and his eyes narrowed.
"Will I also be healed?" asked Smith.
Galt clapped his hand onto Smith's shoulder.
"Eventually. But first you have a date with Judge Narragansett"
And then Smith felt the iron grip of Ragnar Danneskjold on his other shoulder and the two heroes led the remorseful Smith to jail.
As the iron bars shut behind him, the prisoner suddenly spun to face his captors. "Wait a second!" said Smith. "Ragnar did the same thing I did!"
"We'll discuss that at trial" said Galt.

Now, Eric, with Judge Narragansett presiding, would you like to give Smith's defense?