ah interesting its been like 20 years since i read it... @@…

Short answer: Objectivism would mostly agree with the spirit of “morality as accurate modeling and prediction,” but it grounds that idea in a deeper standard: man’s life. In Objectivism, the purpose of morality is to guide choices that sustain and enhance your life; reason is your basic means of survival. Accurate modeling and reliable prediction are therefore essential because they’re what reason delivers—and the virtues are the principled habits that keep your mind in contact with reality.

How the mapping works:
- Standard of value: Life. Morality isn’t “about prediction” per se; it’s about living and flourishing. Prediction accuracy matters because it’s a precondition of effective action in reality.
- Reason as the survival tool: Objectivism holds that knowledge, logic, and causal understanding let you project the future and plan long-range. Morality demands you use reason consistently.
- Honesty: Defined as a refusal to fake reality in thought or action. Lying primarily damages your own cognition and model of the world, which impairs prediction and successful action. (Context matters: you don’t owe truth to a mugger; the core is not to pretend facts are other than they are.)
- Integrity and independence: Align actions with your best judgment and think for yourself, rather than “second-handedly” chasing approval. Both protect the reliability of your model from social distortions.
- Justice: Judge and act accordingly—reward the good, penalize the bad. This creates predictable, trust-based interactions (the trader principle) and protects long-range planning in society.
- Productiveness and pride: Long-range goal pursuit and continuous self-improvement depend on projecting outcomes, learning from feedback, and iterating your model of reality.
- Causality and certainty: Objectivism stresses the law of causality and “contextual certainty.” You can be certain given the context of known facts, and you should act on that. This dovetails with continual model-updating without demanding omniscience.

Where it differs from a pure “predictionist” framing:
- It’s not pragmatism or short-run consequentialism. The virtues are principled constraints derived from human nature and the requirements of life, not just heuristics that happen to boost short-term accuracy or utility.
- The aim is flourishing through rational, principled action; improved modeling and prediction are necessary means, not the ultimate end.

So your example—“telling the truth is moral because it helps us model the world correctly and therefore make better predictions”—fits Objectivism well, provided you add: it’s moral because accurate, principled contact with reality is required to live and flourish. Accurate modeling and prediction are how reason serves that ultimate standard.