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How can one practice the Objectivist virtues (especially independence, integrity, and honesty) in an irrational society where their actions may not be illegal (as in a dictatorship), but the social atmosphere still makes them dangerous to their life? For instance, someone may be fired and become unemployable if they say something society disapproves of, even if it’s rational and just.
I realize that, ideally, one should try to find other people who share their rational values and limit their contact with irrational people. But in professional settings, many can’t afford to be picky about who they work with or for—they’re just worried about having a job at all. In such a case, is it wiser to act to protect your life (by protecting the means of keeping alive) even if that may involve lying about your convictions and acting against them if put on the spot—or, if the price for keeping alive is betraying yourself (and reality), life is simply not worth it?
Andrea, Peikoff addressed this a bit on pages 285-286 of OPAR and similarly Ayn Rand wrote an essay titled “How Does One Lead a Rational Life in an Irrational Society” (in “The Virtue of Selfishness”).I believe both were saying that you have no obligation to reveal your thoughts to others if you as the dissenter are “in the power of the irrational” and doing so would risk your career, income, school grades, etc. Otherwise, if your silence would be taken as agreement with something you think is wrong, you should at least say “I disagree”.
The purpose of morality is to enable you to flourish, not to demand, as an out-of-context absolute, that you act in a certain way. If, in a particular and abnormal context, the normal application of a moral principle would do irreparable harm to your life and would, on net, be a sacrifice of your values, then rational egoism says: don’t do that!.
Recall, though, that the virtues are simply applications of rationality to specific contexts / areas of life. If you’re ongoing situation requires that you flout the normal requirements of reason, that is not sustainable. You might, like Kira, going along with it for awhile, trying not to rock the boat too hard; but life/reason demands that, also like Kira, you try to escape the anti-life situation or otherwise subvert the thing that is subverting your life.
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