Navigator, June, 2000

The Federalist View. When Objectivists think of themselves as heirs to the Enlightenment, in a political sense, they typically trace their roots back to the Jeffersonians. But the American Enlightenment had another faction, the Federalists, who have at least a strong claim to be better known among Objectivists. Though the Federalists were products of the natural-rights tradition, they understood the dangers of democracy and disorder. Though they were central figures in the American Revolution, they were not deluded by the rhetoric of the French Revolution. And though they say the benefits of commerce and manufacturing some of them at least knew that a desire for trade at all costs amounts to appeasement.

In the last four years, Richard Brookhiser has emerged as the person most responsible for bringing about a popular awareness of the Federalists. He is the author of Founding Father: Rediscovering George Washington and Alexander Hamilton: American. Currently, he is at work on a collective biography that will cover four generations of the Adams family. Brookshire, who lives in New York City, is a senior editor at National Review and a columnist for the New York Observer.

Notes towards an Appreciation of Manners. "Why have Objectivists written so little about manners?" asks Navigator editor Roger Donway, and he answers: "I am inclined to believe that it is because they accepted the common view of manners as a sacrifice of one's values and authenticity for the sake of obeying outmoded fashions and arbitrary conventions." In this speculative essay on etiquette, Donway examines some common varieties of manners and, employing the philosophy of interpersonal relationships that David Kelley set forth in Unrugged Individualism, tries to suggest what rational, egoistic motives might underlie them.

Speakers Bureau Interview: David Mayer. David Mayer is a member of The Objectivist Center's Speakers Bureau, which lists his chief topics as "Thomas Jefferson's Legacy of Liberty and Reason," "Restoring the Founders' Constitution," and "Myths of American History." A frequent and popular lecturer at TOC's summer seminars, Mayer is professor of law and history at Capital University in Columbus, Ohio. He holds a J.D. from the University of Michigan and a Ph.D. from the University of Virginia. In a wide-ranging interview with Margaret Nicholoson, assistant to the director of membership development, Mayer talks about Thomas Jefferson, the history of antitrust law, why he quit the American Bar Association, and sources of cultural optimism.