Posted on 08/28/2008 12:20:33 PM PDT by Noumenon
Afterword to Anthem
...Some of those who read the story when it was first written, told me that I was unfair to the ideals of collectivism; this was not, they said, what collectivism preaches or intends; collectivists do not mean or advocate such things; nobody advocates them.
I shall merely point out that the slogan "Production for use and not for profit" is now accepted by most men as commonplace, and a commonplace stating a proper, desirable goal. If any intelligible meaning can be discerned in that slogan at all, what is it, if not the idea that the motive of a man's work must be the needs of others, not his own need, desire or gain?
Compulsory labor conscription is now practiced or advocated in every country on earth. What is it based on, if not the idea that the state is best qualified to decide where a man can be useful to others, such usefulness being the only consideration, and that his own aims, desires, or happiness should be ignored as of no importance?
We have Councils of Vocations, Councils of Eugenics, every possible kind of Council, including a World Council -- and if these do not as yet hold total power over us, is it from lack of intention?
"Social gains," "social aims," "social objectives" have become the daily bromides of our language. The necessity of a social justification for all activities and all existence is now taken for granted. There is no proposal outrageous enough but what its author can get a respectful hearing and approbation if he claims that in some undefined way it is for "the common good."
Some might think -- though I don't -- that nine years ago there was some excuse for men not to see the direction in which the world was going. Today, the evidence is so blatant that no excuse can be claimed by anyone any longer. Those who refuse to see it now are neither blind nor innocent.
The greatest guilt today is that of people who accept collectivism by moral default; the people who seek protection from the necessity of taking a stand, by refusing to admit to themselves the nature of that which they are accepting; the people who support plans specifically designed to achieve serfdom, but hide behind the empty assertion that they are lovers of freedom, with no concrete meaning attached to the word; the people who believe that the content of ideas need not be examined, that principles need not be defined, and that facts can be eliminated by keeping one's eyes shut. They expect, when they find themselves in a world of bloody ruins and concentration camps, to escape moral responsibility by wailing: "But I didn't mean this!"
Those who want slavery should have the grace to name it by its proper name. They must face the full meaning of that which they are advocating or condemning; the full, exact, specific meaning of collectivism, of its logical implications, of the principles upon which it is based, and of the ultimate consequences to which these principles will lead.
They must face it, then decide whether this is what they want or not.
--Ayn Rand. April, 1946
In light of the last few days of the 2008 DNC Looters and Cannibals Ball, I thought that this piece was particularly timely.
Because underneath all of the rhetoric, posturing and buffoonery, there lie ideas and assumptions. Assumptions about the nature and purpose of Man. Ideas that directly address the question: "To whom does my life belong?"
Large numbers of our fellow citizens have decided that, at some level, slavery is just fine with them - especially if it's someone else (or so they think) who'll be wearing the chains.
They think that they're in the vanguard of the elite, the company of the 'saved'. They'll find out soon enough just what their lives are worth, and where they are in the collectivist food chain.
Time for Atlas to shrug - and to pick up a gun.
“—Ayn Rand. April, 1946”
Amazing that we’re fighting the same war 60+ years later. I thought after the Soviet Union fell that that war was over, little did I know.
I’m going to listen tonight to Obama and see how many times he mentions FREEDOM vs SOCIAL and COMMUNITY.
Eternal vigilance.
Don’t forget references to ‘the common good’. That’s the favorite blank check of collectivists.
Yes, and Social Justice and Economic Justice are other code words for communism to watch out for.
And, since it’s impossible in a democracy to agree on “the common good”, arbitrary totalitarian power must be given to some deciding body in order to decide and enforce what THEY decide is the “common good”.
This body also has to have no moral qualms about using any means necessary to achieve the goals that they set for society.
A bump to the top seems reasonable, given the Mr. Robert Mugabe and Winnie Mandela wanna-bes Obama and wife’s recent statements.
Time to stand up. Consider the fate of the signers of the Declaration of independence.
Or, you can just go back to watching the game.
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