FReeper Book Club: Atlas Shrugged, The Theme

A Publius Essay | 17 January 2009 | Publius

[CottonBall]

But what about the students? Don't you see the same thing? Are all students excited and ready to learn? Or are many there because they have to be and are just marking time, considering their school time akin to prison time?

Are you a teacher yourself? Just asking because you come back with thought-provoking questions, as a good teacher used to in the ol' days ;)

Yes, the students are apathetic as well. Probably stemming from the natural desire to NOT be in school as well as them absorbing the attitude of the teachers and other staff. With expectations dumbed down so much, even the brighter students are less motivated. Or perhaps, especially the brighter students.

[JDoutrider]

bttt

Still sifting the archives for my copy...

[CottonBall]

Pass the buck seems to be the order of this day.

Good point. And not even just in the government arenas, but many corporate ones.

[Publius]

Consider yourself pinged.

[Publius]

I've taught in military and corporate environments. I was Teacher of the Year in 1996 at the company I worked for.

Probably stemming from the natural desire to NOT be in school as well as them absorbing the attitude of the teachers and other staff.

Good. Let's connect that to bureaucracy and bureacratic thought and procedures.

And here's a talking point. Compare what Microsoft was like in its early days versus what it's like now that it's a huge corporation.

[Larry Lucido]

Bump for later reading.

[Publius]

Consider youself pinged.

[rlmorel]

True...I thought about that, but it has not come to pass...yet.

[MtnClimber]

I re-read chapter one today. Jim Taggert reminded me of some people I have worked with in the past. You can’t make the obvious decision and act on it because you have not been through their process. And they use their process to inhibit any progress.

[rlmorel]

I take personal responsibility for service, not only in my own job, but in the jobs of those around me. I am a sysadmin for a Radiology department, and I had 10 years of direct service to patients.

I know what constitutes good service, and it is contagious and rewarding. I get a lot of satisfaction out of helping provide that for our patients...

Don’t despair yet!

[Publius]

You can’t make the obvious decision and act on it because you have not been through their process. And they use their process to inhibit any progress.

You sho' said a moufful!

I went through that 30 years ago in an IT shop where I worked. They were so obsessed with Process that it was impossible for anything to get done. The next places I worked after that had all gone through the same mess at about the same time, and the shops had been destroyed.

Years later, I worked at a place where we moved from one building to another, and in the process of moving, all the documentation created by that Process ended up in dumpsters for recycling because the information was so out of date.

Been there, done that.

[r-q-tek86]

But what about the train crew on the Comet? Profit is not a part of their world, but look at their behavior. This is a different kind of rot, and it shows up again and again in the book.

I last read the book about six months ago, so I may be a little fuzzy on some specifics, but I remember thinking that the train crew that wouldn't move for lack of someone telling them what to do reminded me of stories of people who stayed in their offices in the WTC because no one had told them what to do.

I have always been puzzled by that. How do you not take responsibility for your own life and try everything you can?

[wizr]

I WAS in the same situation. I enjoyed helping people. I still enjoy helping others.

Some, where I worked, asked me why I took things so personally. I said because my customers do.

That is why I have an unending burr under my saddle for bureaucrats, and automated assistance from huge companies.

[Publius]

...I remember thinking that the train crew that wouldn't move for lack of someone telling them what to do reminded me of stories of people who stayed in their offices in the WTC because no one had told them what to do.

There's some of that in this. The train crew was petrified of having to take responsibility -- read "the blame" -- for something. They insisted that Dagny take responsiblity for the orders she gave, which she did. They were content to do nothing because that's what the Process said.

[cowboyway]

A modern example would be the Kennedys, although their wealth was ill-gotten from the beginning.

James Taggart was endeavoring to run Taggart Transcontinental as a zero sum game.

The parallel to the Kennedy's is that they want to run the country that way, except, of course, for them.

In the case of Taggart, if one desires to run their business to simply break even, then that's their prerogative and they only hurt themselves.

On the other hand, the Kennedy's (and the liberals in general) want to run the country that way at the cost of the taxpayer.

[r-q-tek86]

James Taggart was endeavoring to run Taggart Transcontinental as a zero sum game.

The "zero-sum game" concept is one of the things that seems to separate liberals and conservatives. Liberals can't or won't see that if wealth is created, more people benefit. The firmly believe that every dollar I make is a dollar that someone else won't make.

[r-q-tek86]

The train crew was petrified of having to take responsibility -- read "the blame" -- for something.

I don't know if it my job or my upbringing or what exactly, but I just cannot relate to this.

Lettng my ego slip out a bit here... taking responsibility also means you get to get the credit and that it gets done the way you think it should be done. I also find that it gives others the cover that they feel like they need to suggest better ideas because they know that I will be the one that takes the heat if their idea doesn't work.

[tarawa]

Please add me to the book club list. It has been years since I read Atlas Shrugged, and I have been wanting to refresh my memory.

[Carlucci]

5. Is there anything disturbing about the Mayor of New York wanting the current date displayed on a large calendar mounted on a skyscraper? What are the implications of this?

This is foreshadowing. As Eddie passes, he is searching for the phrase that fits the calendar, but can't think of it. Then, Pop Harper uses the phrase about an old, technologically obsolete typewriter, but Eddie lost the connection.

"Your days are numbered."

[Publius]

Nice touch. That calendar plays a vital role in the story, not just because it tracks the dates, but because of what d’Anconia does to it later in the book.