Golden Rule

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The Golden Rule: "Do unto others as you'd want them to do unto you."

Ayn Rand made an entry in her journal July 5, 1945. She contended that the Golden Rule was used in support of altruism. For example you must give out to charity because you want to be an object of charity yourself. The extension of this is you must sacrifice yourself to others because you want others to sacrifice themselves to you.

She held that the golden rule can work only in application to her morality: you do not sacrifice yourself to others and you do not wish them to sacrifice themselves to you.

As if out of "The Ethics of Emergencies" which had not yet been written, she continues by pointing out: You may want to be helped in an emergency or a catastrophe—but only in such cases. You consider such cases a calamity—not your normal and proper state of existence.

She concludes with the following: You do not wish to live as an object of charity—and you do not hand charity out to others.