Where is John Galt?

Evil Conservative Radio ^ | 05 Apr 09 | EC

[nysuperdoodle]

All readers of Ayn Rand's masterpiece, Atlas Shrugged, know its central question, "Who is John Galt?"

Written over half a century ago, it is clearly the greatest and most influential novel of the 20th century. Over six million copies have been sold, averaging 77,000 copies per year in the 1980s, 90,000 in the 1990s, 137,000 in the 00s - until recently.

200,000 copies were sold in 2008, and sales so far this year are at triple those of last year. This is because, according to the Ayn Rand Institute, "there are uncanny similarities between the plot-line of the book and the events of our day."

[cowboyway]

If that doesn’t do it for you how about William F. Buckley’s “God and Man at Yale”.

There are a couple of key words in the statement about Atlas Shrugged: influential and novel.

God and Man at Yale and Free To Choose are no where near as high in sales as Atlas Shrugged (influence) and I don't believe either one would be considered 'novels'.

[Patrick1]

Good point. As far as novel’s go I will go with Catcher in the Rye or Grapes of Wrath.

[Popman]

I tend to agree with the Randites, but it's all a little too L. Ron Hubbard for me.

Adam Smith did say it better, but both books are completely different. One is a fiction (at least it was until Nov 4th), one is non fiction.

Your second comment about L. Ron Hubbard is without a once of sense

Have that second cup of coffee :)

[Borges]

Ever heard of Joyce? Faulkner? Nabokov?

[Patrick1]

I would say that both Freedman and Buckley were far more influential than anything Anne Rynd ever wrote. Since the policies promoted in both books were actually put into action by Ronald Reagan.

I didn’t know sales was the basis of influence after all checkers sells more than chess.

[cowboyway]

The "Great and Perfect Leader that shall unite us all" does not exist either. We have to work with what we have.

Don't be so hasty, harmless.

Out of the ashes arises the phoenix. I'm sure that there is a William Wallace or Patrick Henry out there somewhere.

It could be you...........................

[cowboyway]

One word: NOVEL

[Tribune7]

She's right on that.

[jellybean]

STARVE THE BEAST!

Atlas Shrugged ping!

Where is John Galt?

Thus true patriotism begins with you. It begins with all of us. Ayn Rand was a monumental genius. She saw clearly the consequences of fascist anti-capitalist liberalism in the halcyon days of the 1950s. We are now in 2009 living in the world of Atlas Shrugged - but without John Galt.

Unless each of us takes responsibility for our own fate and chooses to be our own John Galt. Look inside yourself. That's where you'll find him.

[cowboyway]

Ever heard of Joyce? Faulkner? Nabokov?

Quite.

I like Joyce; we share that Irish blood and Faulkner, a fellow Southerner, is one of my favorites.

But I have to agree that Atlas Shrugged influenced me more than either Joyce or Faulkner.

[Lurker]

I will go with Catcher in the Rye

An absolutely completely over rated piece of crap. That and nearly anything by Hemingway....

L

[Scotswife]

These debates pop up on all the Rand threads.

She wasn’t a great writer like many of the authors that are often listed - but her “idea” for her novel was fantastic.

[ErnBatavia]

“Who is John Galt?”, will be prominently displayed on one of my signs

I'm thinking about two front-runners....."Barack in '08, Broke in '09" as well as "Stop enslaving my grandkids".

[Kozak]

Ever heard of Joyce? Faulkner? Nabokov?

But I have to agree that Atlas Shrugged influenced me more than either Joyce or Faulkner.

I don't know. We have LOTS of drunks and pedophiles...

[BradyLS]

“One of the methods used by statists to destroy capitalism consists in establishing controls that tie a given industry hand and foot, making it unable to solve its problems, then declaring that freedom has failed and stronger controls are necessary.” — Ayn Rand

Whooo! Ain't that the truth! Drudge has it that the Administration won't take back TARP money so they can keep control over the banks. And I hear the banks were given little-to-no choice about the matter when the TARP money was "offered" in the first place!

[BradyLS]

Look inside yourself. That's where you'll find him.

QFT

[stockpirate]

We are not in need of John Galt, what the country needs is Alexander Hamilton, Ben Franklin, George Washington.

While the book is a great read, I’ve read it three times, it’s solution is no longer viaable.

[6SJ7]

Like Prince Charming he is a figure of myth that people wait for rather then rolling up their sleeves and getting to work themselves on their problems. The "Great and Perfect Leader that shall unite us all" does not exist either. We have to work with what we have.

In "Atlas Shrugged", Galt is not a leader, he is the man who says "no" to the socialists by going away. He encourages other productive individuals, men of the mind, to walk away from their work; to disappear, and thus deny the socialists the real capital on which they need to feed; the ability of the individual to think and produce.

[elfman2]

"One of the methods used by statists to destroy capitalism consists in establishing controls that tie a given industry hand and foot, making it unable to solve its problems, then declaring that freedom has failed and stronger controls are necessary.” — Ayn Rand"

'Esthétique du Mal' (The Beauty of Evil)