Posted on 03/16/2009 6:21:45 AM PDT by shove_it
Ayn Rand died more than a quarter of a century ago, yet her name appears regularly in discussions of our current economic turmoil. Pundits including Rush Limbaugh and Rick Santelli urge listeners to read her books, and her magnum opus, "Atlas Shrugged," is selling at a faster rate today than at any time during its 51-year history.
There's a reason. In "Atlas," Rand tells the story of the U.S. economy crumbling under the weight of crushing government interventions and regulations. Meanwhile, blaming greed and the free market, Washington responds with more controls that only deepen the crisis. Sound familiar?
The novel's eerily prophetic nature is no coincidence. "If you understand the dominant philosophy of a society," Rand wrote elsewhere in "Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal," "you can predict its course." Economic crises and runaway government power grabs don't just happen by themselves; they are the product of the philosophical ideas prevalent in a society -- particularly its dominant moral ideas.
[...]
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
I believe she said there was a place for voluntary altruism when they are in Galt's gaulch where altruism is warranted when it's to your benefit such as loved ones, friends and counterparts. Ill have to check though... But I think a Donahue interview in the 70's she mentioned it as well. This belief clashes with Christianity and that is the hardest part for a Christian capitalist to reconcile when reading Rand's work.
Ahh, you prick me.
My fear is that when sorted, I will fall into the “God opposes the proud...” crowd.
But is her philosophy really all that great? Couldn’t we get all of her good ideas from other sources and skip out of reading her 37,000 page novels. There should be NO required reading, parents should decide what their kids read. Well maybe it should be required reading in the prisons.
LOL!
You no doubt recall her famous statement in Atlas Shrugged: "Examine your premises, you'll find that one of them is wrong."
I ceased being a Rand fan when I took her at her word and examined her premises ... and discovered that her claims were not connected to the real world. One cannot look at the real world and, through objective reason, arrive at Rand's conclusions.
For example, Rand claimed that "Man—every man—is an end in himself, not the means to the ends of others." OK, fine ... but where in objective reality can she find evidence of that? The evidence of the natural world far more strongly suggests that "Man—every man—is a means to his children's end."
Rand claimed that "reality exists as an objective absolute—facts are facts, independent of man’s feelings, wishes, hopes or fears." Well and good -- but reality itself rejects a primary cornerstone of Rand's faith.
I concluded, actually, that Rand was most likely driven by a desperate need to justify her own atheism. Her fundamentally silly philosophy seems to be predicated on trying to derive the last 6 Commandments without reference to the first four.
It’s not just faith, it’s reason.
Treat Atals Shrugged like you would a Salad Bar, take what you like and leave what you dislike.
I liked her “non-fiction” Capitalism: “The Unknown Ideal”.
It was a distillation of the political philosophy of Miss Rand.
Short read, good book.
—
I also particularly liked a similar book that is also very apporopriate today:
“How to find Happiness during the Collapse of Western Civilization” (R.J. Ringer 1983)
“On reflection, there probably is one distinction that can be made among a liberal, socialist, and communist. While all three are dishonest, each one presents himself differently to the world.
A liberal is nothing more than a closet communist; a socialist is in the process of coming out of the closet; and a communist is already on the outside, trying to shove you into the closet”
It's been a few years since I reread it, but I'm having a hard time thinking of many of the "business heroes" in Atlas Shrugged as working in a non-entreprenurial company. In fact, the only one I can think of off the top of my head is Dagny Taggart. Everyone else either started the company or bought/inherited a company and vastly grew it. Characters like James Taggart and Orren Boyle are examples of your "overpaid bureaucrats".
No way. You really need to read the words she puts into her characters' mouths, especially the villains. I've read the book cover-to-cover seven times now I think. There are some parts that sometimes make my eyes glaze over (mostly the sex) but even these help make up the whole. You could cut a sentence out of the Galt Speech or a Francisco rant, and you wouldn't know it was missing, but then you would be cutting out some important idea.
ML/NJ
But not all of the business leaders in her book are heros. She portrays many different types. Those like Reardon..who live to create and build. Then there are the weak ones, who inherited (like jim taggert) but don’t know how to lead or run anything. Then there are those that would fail if not for them running to the government to get help in making everything fair (like forcing the achieving business to cut production, give up the patents etc. I found as many businesmen to disike and I did to like in this book.
There is a difference between a good message and a good story.
I’m reading it now and keep thinking that there should be an abridged edition. I’d like my oldest kid to read it but know he wouldn’t be able to get through this. Cut out half of the philosophic dialog..it gets repetitive.”
Don’t say how old ‘your kid’ is.
If ‘kid’ is above the age of 18, it is a shame that you have no confidence that they will finish the book. A product of the ‘education system’, I guess.
If the kid is under 18- save a copy for them to read when age appropriate.
I don’t agree that the book should be abridged. It needs the length it has, IMO, and I have read it 7 times. Mostly to give me a pick-me-up when things like the Nobama election results hammer at me.
I would say that your issue isn’t with “The Businessman”, but the government schooled people he is forced to hire because the pool of creative thinkers is so shallow.
While tracking it down I saw it was originally published in Playboy, so I doubt you saw the original in school. I remember reading too, but it was in some anthology.
my kid is in middle school. I’m trying to teach him what going on in the economy and the govt. right now. I’d like there to be an entertaing novel to help illustrate for his age. You shouldn’t take such offense at the idea of an abridged version. I read there may be a movie in the works...talk about abridged.
I see. You prefer the writings of the fellow who put a gun to his own head.
I suppose that you likely will not see the irony of that.
I appreciate your thoughts on Rand as I am attempting to read her for the second time. In the short span of the book I have read so far, I am in agreement with your thesis of Rand's flawed vision of the capitalist as Hero. While I am only a short way into the book, I have begun to find it a little tiresome. In some respects, I understand she is trying to draw a sharp contrast of self-interest over collective interest in order to advance her philosophical concepts. However, she presents the capitalists as being without human flaws and the collectivists as the sum of their flaws. This does not ring true to the reality we experience daily, as your post points out.
I do not intend, however, to allow this distraction to keep me from my appointed goal to complete the reading of this book.
I remember that story. The kid would ask questions about everything that the father wasn’t smart enough to answer....
Only the names have been changed to protect the ... oh, never mind.
Nicely said. Lot of people here testing the integrity of the sneeze guard, by the way....
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.