In a world in which Judeo-Christian "altruism" is the opiate of the masses, the polemisists for this ideology have waged a smear campaign against its arch-enemy. So much for "altruism" towards those with whom they disagree. Evidence Garrison Keillor's book "Homegrown Democrat" for a scree on hatred and intolerance that rivals "Mein Kampf" in its high-strung tenor of bigotry and populist anti-intellectualism against one's "enemies." Along comes David Kelley, who presents an eminently convincing argument for the value of human dignity and life based not on the "revealed truth" of a gaseous vertebrate, or its secularized version, the state, but on the premise that human life must be the standard of all moral and ethical systems. He demonstrates very convincingly that tolerance and benevolence toward our fellow humans is an outgrowth of the recognition of the value of our own lives above the value of the group. He shows that the practice of egoism is a positive affirmation of human life as an ethical primary which enables one to feel comfortable with being tolerant of others' opinions, cultures, etc. As a consequence, one develops a generalized sense of benevolence not only toward our fellow human beings, but also to reality. Kelley's book takes its place among the growing galaxy of positive discussions of ethical egoism that started with Ayn Rand, and Nathaniel Brandoen's "The Virtue of Selfishness."