From Libertarian Wiki

An egoist is a person who believes that he should act in his own interest, considering the interests of others only to the extent that they promote his own interests. Anti-libertarians often portray libertarianism as being fundamentally egoist, ignoring the long tradition of utilitarian and natural law libertarianism. The Libertarian Party emphasis on "principles" is indicative of a natural law approach to politics. Among libertarians, egoism is most pronounced in objectivist and individualist anarchist traditions.

Egoists value personal motivation over concepts of obligation. Obligations are viewed as an extension of personal motivation; treating percieved obligations as objective is self-delusional and makes people prone to impose themselves upon others, creating unnecessary conflict.

While egoists are often accused of being violent and anti-social, they embrace society to the extent that it is a natural outgrowth of individual interests. Since most humans are naturally socialable, the adoption of egoist values should not result in the abandonment of society. However, even if it would, that would not deminish the fact that it is the rational way to approach life.

There is a strong argument to be made that psychologically all choices are made from an egoist moral standpoint. Because Egoists are not super human they must calculate the best course to take for their own longterm benefits, which often means relying on principles in order to simplify the process. Further complicating the issue the human brain seems to be hardwired to take the needs of others into account in such a way as to protect Darwinian best interests, so multiple levels of redundant social interests are built in, some of which are satisfied by ascribing to philosophical views such as humanism.

Notable egoists in libertarian tradition

• Ayn Rand (wikipedia)
• Max Stirner (wikipedia)

Egoists in the non-political tradition

• Epicurus (wikipedia)

Egoist essays

• Demoralizing Moralism: The Futility of Fetishized Values from Anarchy: A Journal of Desire Armed