Useful product

Objectivists will agree that man's means of survival is his intellect but he couldn't have risen to his current state without his opposable thumb that allowed him to create his tools and weapons (and, incidentally, his first capital goods). I don't know which came first — his big brain or his opposable thumb and don't know anyone that does, but I would hazard the guess that his thumb came first.

I think it's important to make useful things to keep "grounded" by experiencing physical reality. Physical contact with the world around us can be gained by sports and other activities but creating a new, practical thing is also an exercise in problem solving ... I'm not speaking about mindless production line activity. Roark was a capable draughtsman and could quarry marble and set it in a fireplace, Rearden and D'Anconia had the skills to contend with a crisis with a blast furnace. We know that Galt conceived his machine but I don't recall that he created the physical embodiment of it.

Post 1

Monday, October 13, 2003 - 1:23pm

I've assembled bookcases, bicycles, and computers. I cook my own meals. Does any of that count?

Post 2

Monday, October 13, 2003 - 2:08pm

Well, not really, IMO. I think those were just following instructions. Surely, if you designed your bookcases, figured out how the pieces would go together so it wouldn't fall down, cut the pieces, etc. it certainly would qualify. Some could argue that cooking is a creative art form, but it's transitory.

In my mind, what I'm after is an asset ... a capital good. Creating a bicycle, or a part of one, would be at the level of a professional or serious amateur.

Post 3

Monday, October 13, 2003 - 8:23pm

My first productive endevour was the construction of a dresser/entertainment center. Made of wood, it took 3 months of sanding/staining/cutting/design and was worth every minute. It ended up weighing 200+ lbs. with a big drawer that was strong enough to function with you standing in it! That is how I learned to use power tools and my brain at the age of 22!

Post 4

Friday, October 17, 2003 - 7:56pm

I'm a photographer that takes photos of useful physical products then puts the photos in a computer to make brochures that I have printed on useful physical paper then sell that paper to the guy who made the useful physical product in the first place so he can sell more of the useful physical products he has made. And around and around we go "capitalism" who knows maybe I've photographed those bookshelves made in china that are so painful to put together with the bad directions and the one missing part.

Post 5

Friday, October 24, 2003 - 11:26am