Sam Harris Versus the Self-Made Man

By Joshua Lipana

Sam Harris recently published an article in The Huffington Post entitled "A New Year's Resolution for the Rich" in it, he says:

"...devotees of self-reliance rail against those who would receive entitlements of various sorts -- health care, education, etc. -- while feeling unselfconsciously entitled to their relative good fortune."

In the article, Harris makes no distinction between those who work and earn what they have, and those who rely on hand-outs or the expropriated wealth of others. Those who have worked hard for their money, regardless of how much, have the moral right to keep it. Harris decries those who praise the virtue of self-reliance because they feel entitled and enjoy the products of their mind. Hard-work means nothing to Harris; the moocher and the producer are moral equals.

He continues and states:

"...no one is responsible for his intelligence, range of talents, or ability to do productive work."

The student who studies hard to get a scholarship, the athlete who trains without cease to better his performance, and the industrialist who masters nature to create the materials that make skyscrapers possible. These are the people who Harris claims are not responsible for their achievements. In one sentence, Harris was able to spit on the face of everyone in the world who has worked tirelessly to achieve their dreams.

Harris has continuously claimed to be an advocate of reason when it is precisely man using his rational faculty to enjoy life that he sets himself against.

In the last paragraph, Harris asks the readers the question: "...what's to stop the wealthiest Americans from sponsoring a 21st Century Renaissance?" The answer is, you are Mr. Harris, you and your ideas.

(P.S: If you think the quotes I quoted were too evil and that it must be out of context, I advise you to read the entire article of Sam Harris in The Huffington Post.)