Free Republic

Previous Page The Daily Walk of Shame: Ayn Rand http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2009/11/04/the-daily-walk-of-shame-ayn-rand.aspx Alyce LomaxNovember 4, 2009This Motley Fool series examines things that just aren't right in the world of finance and investing. Here's what's got us riled today. If something's bugging you, too -- and we suspect it is -- go ahead and unload in the comments section below.Today's subject: Economic philosopher Ayn Rand died in 1982, but her legacy remains very much alive. Unfortunately, some people in positions of power have used parts of her Objectivist teachings to rationalize their own dysfunctional, damaging behavior. I definitely agree with the benefits...

Ayn Rand is one of America's great mysteries. She was an amphetamine-addicted author of sub-Dan Brown potboilers, who in her spare time wrote lavish torrents of praise for serial killers and the Bernie Madoff-style embezzlers of her day. She opposed democracy on the grounds that "the masses"—her readers—were "lice" and "parasites" who scarcely deserved to live. Yet she remains one of the most popular writers in the United States, still selling 800,000 books a year from beyond the grave. She regularly tops any list of books that Americans say have most influenced them. Since the great crash of 2008, her...

Whenever Ayn Rand met someone new—an acolyte who’d traveled cross-country to study at her feet, an editor hoping to publish her next novel—she would open the conversation with a line that seems destined to go down as one of history’s all-time classic icebreakers: “Tell me your premises.” Once you’d managed to mumble something halfhearted about loving your family, say, or the Golden Rule, Rand would set about systematically exposing all of your logical contradictions, then steer you toward her own inviolable set of premises: that man is a heroic being, achievement is the aim of life, existence exists, A is...

Wealthy people are leaving the tax-hell of New York, while 45% of doctors would consider quitting if Obama Care were enacted. Scary prospects for New York’s looter class and the nation as a whole, respectfully, when those who produce, create, innovate and do the hard work at the top are abused to the point of giving up or leaving. The class-warfare stresses are there: “They’re rich and greedy; they deserve to be taxed more than the rest of us.“ “Those selfish, greedy doctors – willing to leave the poor, sick people of America because of their own greed.”

... Most recently the worldview that I am describing has colored much of the conservative outrage at the prospect of health care reform, which some have called a "redistribution of health" from those wise enough to have secured health insurance to those who have not. "President Obama says he will cover thirty to forty to fifty million people who are not covered now--without it costing any money," fumed Rudolph Giuliani. "They will have to cut other services, cut programs. They will have to be making decisions about people who are elderly." [...] In these disparate comments we can see the...

Daniel H from northern England wrote CMI-UK a really encouraging, spontaneous letter, a testimony that we think will also encourage many readers. To: All my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus. … I would like to thank the team at Creation Ministries International (CMI) for their resources, time, love, dedication and zeal for our God and Saviour, Jesus Christ; the Almighty Father and the Holy Spirit, who empowers the church to give glory to the Son and live holy lives and become more fruitful in our walk in the LORD, Amen. Formerly, I was an unbeliever who mocked the...

Steve Ditko is one of the most innovative and influential comic book artists of all time. He co-created “The Amazing Spider-Man” (Ditko’s original and imaginative design for that character is an icon known world-wide) and worked on such well-known characters as The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man. His creative contributions to those characters during their early years helped secure their longevity and appeal over the decades. [SNIP] Originally included in the graphic novel, “Steve Ditko’s Static,” published by Robin Snyder and Steve Ditko in 1988, “In Principle” is chillingly more relevant today than it was when it was originally published....

During the campaign we were told that Barack Obama was post-partisan, we were told that he was post-racial and we were told he was a transformational figure. In other words the willfully ignorant leftwing media bought and fishwrapped all of the Obama Campaign tripe and resold it to the voters of this country. Meanwhile the opposition party nominated a doddering old fool who did little opposing and a lot of agreeing. Little did the average American know, although conservative activists and freepers knew all too well, the administration would be nothing like the promises. From the very beginning the most...

Sales of the Russian-American writer’s books, especially Atlas Shrugged, have surged each time financial markets have wobbled and governments have stepped in. The 1957 epic includes a 30-page monologue on the virtues of individualism, self-interest, and radically free markets, and at one point this year, it was outselling Barack Obama’s “Audacity of Hope.” But some notable adherents, such as Alan Greenspan, are having second thoughts about Rand’s ideas. We’ll speak with Jennifer Burns, professor of history at University of Virginia, and author of the upcoming “Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand and the American Right.”

IT'S A COLD, gray morning. The sky is dark and it looks like it's going to rain. But there are lots of families here waiting in line for the new link. Up ahead through the crowd I see my friend Angie and her mom walking back from the front of the line. "Hey Angie!" But Angie just manages a weak smile and a wave as her mom pulls her past us. Her mom is wiping away tears. "They said I'm too sick for the new link," Angie says. With a bony white hand Angie is holding her collar closed against...

In the wake of the financial crisis, corporations have gotten an even worse reputation than previously held. Pundits and politicians from both parties slam ambiguous “corporations” and “CEOs” for ruining America. Let me point out what none of these spectators have – it is thanks to the same CEOs and businesses that America became so successful in the first place. Any critic has committed one of two fallacies when they express this opinion: One option is that this person actually believes that all corporations are bad and that CEOs are a bad influence – which would be a ridiculous and...

Despite a number of differences I have with Ayn Rand on issues of religion and philosophy, her 1957 magnum opus, "Atlas Shrugged," definitely steered me away from the leftist upbringing I had, and introduced me to the world of conservative ideas and authors: Ludwig von Mises, Henry Hazlitt, Milton Friedman, Isabel Paterson, and many others. Universally panned by literary critics of the day, "Atlas" was, nevertheless, a bestseller in 1957, and continued to sell about 100,000 copies a year for 51 consecutive years. 52 years later -- just after the inauguration of zerobama -- "Atlas" has apparently tripled its sales...

In stunningly self-centered, cruel fashion, Nicholas Provenzo, writer for the Center for the Advancement of Capitalism suggests that Sarah Palin’s decision to give birth to a child with Down Syndrome, is a financial burden that others are forced to suffer with. Provenzo, who has written opinion pieces for the Washington Times, Capitalism Magazine, and the Atlanta Journal Constitution, as well as being a guest on Bill Maher’s former show, Politically Incorrect, makes his case for “the morality of aborting a fetus diagnosed with Down syndrome.” The full first paragraph of the piece which is circulating amidst the blogosphere reads (emphasis...

The Significance of Ayn Rand's Novel Atlas Shrugged From The Ayn Rand Institute "I refuse to apologize for my ability -- I refuse to apologize for my success -- I refuse to apologize for my money." The U.S. economy is in shambles, with every nightly newscast bringing word of new government interventions. Americans are alarmed and desperate for answers: How did we get here? How will we recover? That might sound like a description of today's world, but in fact it's also a sketch of the world Ayn Rand created in her classic novel Atlas Shrugged. The tea parties testify...

Dying on the same day as Michael Jackson, the passing of actress and American sex symbol Farrah Fawcett at age 62 became somewhat of a secondary story. Amy Wallace with The Daily Beast, however, produced an excellent story on the beautiful Texan that should interest Western Standard readers. In an email exchange with Fawcett just months before her death, Wallace discovered that novelist/philosopher Ayn Rand was a fan of the actress. Wallace wrote: But here are a few things that almost no one knew about Fawcett: 1) Fawcett and the writer Ayn Rand shared a birthday, February 2. 2) Rand,...

The Government has nationalised the East Coast main line after stripping National Express, the troubled bus and rail operator, of the franchise. Lord Adonis, the Transport Secretary, said he had been forced into the drastic move to "ensure continuity of service to passengers, with no disruption or diminution of service standards". The struggling transport group reported on Wednesday that Richard Bowker, its chief executive, had quit and it warned on profits in a trading update. Lord Adonis, speaking on the BBC Today programme said: "I am simply not prepared to bail out companies that are unable to fulfil their commitments....

Ayn Rand was an atheist. According to her one-time associate Barbara Branden, Rand became an atheist at age thirteen. Branden records Rand writing in her diary at that age: "Today I decided to be an atheist." Branden then reports her as later explaining, "I had decided that the concept of God is degrading to men. Since they say that God is perfect, man can never be that perfect, then man is low and imperfect and there is something above him – which is wrong." [Branden, PAR, p. 35.] Branden continues that Rand's "second reason" is that "no proof of the...

"Racism is the lowest, most crudely primitive form of collectivism. It is the notion of ascribing moral, social or political significance to a man's genetic lineage—the notion that a man's intellectual and characterological traits are produced and transmitted by his internal body chemistry. Which means, in practice, that a man is to be judged, not by his own character and actions, but by the characters and actions of a collective of ancestors."- Ayn Rand  The Department of Homeland Security has, as been the case time and time again, chosen to lump the 'Right' with radical racist groups such as the...

Part II: Either-OrChapter X: The Sign of the DollarSynopsisThe Comet rolls across Nebraska with Dagny’s private car in the consist. Dagny hears the shout of the conductor throwing a hobo off the vestibule of her car, but she rescues the hobo and asks him to be her dinner guest. He vaguely remembers her as “the lady who ran a railroad”, and he has been roaming the country for the past six months looking for work. Jobs are being hoarded for the friends of Unification Board members, and he is heading west to avoid them. Farmers aren’t happy to feed hobos,...

Francisco's 'Money' Speech from "Atlas Shrugged" Rearden heard Bertram Scudder, outside the group, say to a girl who made some sound of indignation, "Don't let him disturb you. You know, money is the root of all evil – and he's the typical product of money." Rearden did not think that Francisco could have heard it, but he saw Francisco turning to them with a gravely courteous smile. "So you think that money is the root of all evil?" said Francisco d'Aconia. "Have you ever asked what is the root of money? Money is a tool of exchange, which can't exist...

She lives in the pages of her books. Model-actress Nethra Raghuraman, who hit the screen in 1999 with Govind Nihalani's Takshak, says her role model is the rebel architect Howard Roark from Ayn Rand's bestseller The Fountainhead who built skyscrapers in the US 75 years ago. "I want to be like Howard Roark - he is an epitome of a person who has no malice towards anyone, no hatred. He loves his work and loves his woman. I want to have a love like him, which demands possession and ownership," Nethra told IANS, when queried about her other big love...

If you're not attuned to the philosophy of Objectivism, are interested in it, or are skeptical because of criticisms you may have heard, this is a fantastic interview wherein Ayn Rand expresses herself very clearly and concisely in defining and outlining Objectivism, while clarifying her stance against some tough examples of criticism from Wallace.

Residents Say They're Terrorized By Pit Bulls Posted: 6:16 pm EDT May 1, 2009Updated: 6:33 pm EDT May 1, 2009 SANFORD, Fla. -- Some Sanford homeowners say they're being terrorized by their neighbor's pit bulls. One of the dogs has already attacked a neighbor near Lily Court in Sanford. Eyewitness News has learned the dogs' owners are not keeping their fence secure. Some of the breaks in the fence are big enough for an adult to easily climb through. After many calls to animal control, neighbors say they want the fence fixed once and for all. "Chasing children, attacking children....

The Economist recently reported that Ayn Rand’s novel Atlas Shrugged, first published in 1957, is back on the bestseller lists. A week before the president’s inauguration, more people were buying it than Obama’s Audacity of Hope. For the uninitiated, Atlas explores a future world in which the nation’s economy is collapsing because of government interference. The theme developed out of Rand’s own era: she started planning her novel in 1943, in the midst of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal. But it’s no wonder that it seems relevant today. New Deal activism, which was principally responsible for prolonging the Great Depression, guides...

The number are in, and paleo-capitalist Ayn Rand’s hot again. “Atlas Shrugged” is selling at a pace not seen since the novel was published in 1957. Sales of her other major novel, “The Fountainhead,” are up as well. It’s clear that the recession and a very liberal political leadership have caused the renewed interest. Economist Stephen Moore recently wrote in the Wall Street Journal that the Obama strategy mirrors the plot of “Atlas Shrugged. “The more incompetent you are in business, the more handouts the politicians will bestow on you,” Moore said. I recently re-read “Atlas Shrugged” and “The Fountainhead.”...

In the midst of the credit crisis and the federal government's massive bailout plan, the works of Rand, a proponent of a libertarian, free-market philosophy she called Objectivism, are getting new attention. "If only 'Atlas' were required reading for every member of Congress and political appointee in the Obama administration. I'm confident that we'd get out of the current financial mess a lot faster," Wall Street Journal columnist Stephen Moore wrote in early January. It's obviously getting attention from the general public. Rand book sales are "going through the roof," said Yaron Brook, the president of the Ayn Rand Institute....

Part II: Either-OrChapter V: Account OverdrawnSynopsisThings in America have gone to hell in a handbasket. Blizzards are met without snow removal in a world of unheated houses, stranded trains and people frozen to death. The Danagger coal bound for Taggart Transcontinental goes to the People’s State of England whose problems are even worse. That means trains with California produce are stuck on sidings, and the wilted produce ends up, not at the Hunts Point Produce Terminal in Brooklyn, but in the East River. The growers go out of business, and nobody cares because they are private concerns. The Danagger coal...

Going Galt!! “Tea parties.” “Going Galt.” You’ve probably seen a growing number of references to these in the media, online, and on signs at rallies reacting to new government spending and controls. The Boston Tea Party was a rebellion against excessive government. Today’s “tea parties” say “no” to spending without limit and the government takeover of our lives. “Going Galt!” If you’ve read Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged, you appreciate the parallels between today’s disintegrating world and the events depicted in that prophetic novel. Atlas Shrugged is the story ofhow productive people went on strike, withdrawing their services in protest against...

Washington, D.C., March 18, 2009--Earlier this year Ayn Rand’s prophetic novel Atlas Shrugged was selling at triple the rate it sold at in the beginning of 2008. Now the novel is soaring to even greater heights, and its trade paperback edition is currently in first place in the Classics category on Amazon.com’s best-seller list for sales in the United States. The 50th anniversary mass-market paperback edition of Atlas Shrugged ranks as #2 and the trade paperback Centennial edition ranks as #3. For several weeks Atlas Shrugged has been holding steady in the top 10 best-sellers in the broader United States...

In Ayn Rand's first television interview, she talks to Mike Wallace about self-interest, the efficiency of free markets, and the dangers of the government welfare state. If I didn't know better, I would almost think that she had traveled backward 50 years from today before she gave this interview - she's that dead-on. Not being an atheist, I don't consider myself an Objectivist. That being the case, I sincerely think I would prefer a government led by atheist Objectivists to a government run by liberal "Christians."

It's been all over the news - Rush Limbaugh packing up camp and abandoning his operations in New York City. It's been the subject of a Jon Stewart "The Daily Show" tirade [0] and even drew the attention of New York Gov. David Paterson [0]. Limbaugh appeared on Fox News Channel's April 8 "Your World with Neil Cavuto" [1] and explained why he was leaving and how he felt about those that were glad he was leaving. "Well, if they're glad I'm leaving, Neil, then I assume that the governor of New York, the unelected governor - has no interest...

Novelist Ayn Rand has always driven lefties to distraction, but it seems that readers are turning in increasing numbers to the founder of “Objectivism” for clues about the origins of the current financial crisis. Atlas Shrugged — her sprawling novel set in a United States where the economy is collapsing under the dead weight of government edict — reportedly sold 200,000 copies south of the border last year. Sales have continued to rise in 2009 and, according to tracking Web site TitleZ.com, the book is currently No. 30 on the Amazon rankings. The Economist has noted that spikes in sales...

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...

Hollywood could soon be going Objectivist. After decades in development hell, Ayn Rand’s capitalism-minded “Atlas Shrugged” is taking new steps toward the big screen — with one of the film world’s most prominent money men potentially at its center. Ryan Kavanaugh’s Relativity Media is circling the Baldwin Entertainment project and could come aboard to finance with Lionsgate, which got involved several years ago. Rand’s popular but polarizing book — it’s derided by many literary critics but has a huge public following — tells the story of Dagny Taggart, a railroad executive trying to keep her corporation competitive in the face...

For the past two weeks, with a big hat tip to Dr. Helen Smith who diagnosed the phenomenon last fall, we’ve had a fascinating and spirited discussion here about the “Going Galt” movement that’s catching on nationwide. There’s now even a Twitter hashtag for the phenomenon: #goinggalt. My email box (especially after publication of my recent syndicated column on the subject) continues to fill up with letters from readers choosing in large and small ways to go Galt. Reader Ron Ruffer of Pa. e-mails: Dear Ms. Malkin, First I would like to say that I very much enjoy your commentary...

Bestsellers in Books Any Category > Books The most popular items in Books. Updated hourly. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. Liberty and Tyranny: A Conservative Manifesto by Mark R. Levin (Author) 299 Reviews 5 star: (243) 4 star: (12) 3 star: (5) 2 star: (5) 1 star: (34) › See all 299 customer reviews... (299 customer reviews) | 31 customer discussions Usually ships in 1 to 3 weeks List Price: $25.00 Price: $13.75 You Save: $11.25 (45%) 26 used & new from $13.75 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 22. Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand (Author) 1,738 Reviews 5 star: (1,029) 4 star: (247) 3 star: (143) 2...

Hollywood could soon be going Objectivist. After decades in development hell, Ayn Rand’s capitalism-minded “Atlas Shrugged” is taking new steps toward the big screen — with one of the film world’s most prominent money men potentially at its center. Ryan Kavanaugh’s Relativity Media is circling the Baldwin Entertainment project and could come aboard to finance with Lionsgate, which got involved several years ago. Rand’s popular but polarizing book — it’s derided by many literary critics but has a huge public following — tells the story of Dagny Taggart, a railroad executive trying to keep her corporation competitive in the face...

The state of the US economy and the anticipation of increased taxation has inspired numerous references in recent weeks to the book "Atlas Shrugged", by the late author and philosopher Ayn Rand. In her fictitious book Rand anticipates a time when those who create wealth within the social order, and from whom that wealth is forceably extracted for the benefit of others, eventually express their frustration by ceasing their labors. Those drawing the parallel to today’s reality suggest that we are now approaching a scenario when the real producers of today’s society will cease to produce, resulting in dramatic social...

Ayn Rand, the author of Atlas Shrugged is interviewed by Mike Wallace in 1959. She talks morality and government. If I had to peg her, I would say she'd be a backer of Ron Paul. Definitely not a Palin supporter. I did just get her book and am into the second chapter. It's a good read so far.Libertas

The Real Meaning of Earth Hour By Keith Lockitch (March 23, 2009) On Saturday, March 28, cities around the world will turn off their lights to observe “Earth Hour.” Iconic landmarks from the Sydney Opera House to Manhattan’s skyscrapers will be darkened to encourage reduced energy use and signal a commitment to fighting climate change. While a one-hour blackout will admittedly have little effect on carbon emissions, what matters, organizers say, is the event’s symbolic meaning. That’s true, but not in the way organizers intend. We hear constantly that the debate is over on climate change--that man-made greenhouse gases are...

Sometimes I feel as if God has taken Rand's Atlas Shrugged and turned into into a nonstop running play, using the United States as his grand stage (much as Rand did in her novel). Listen to Tim Geitner today as he demands the title of economic czar of the nation: Geithner seeks new powers over financial companies Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner called on Congress Tuesday to grant him new powers to regulate huge financial companies like insurance giant AIG, whose failure would pose a grave danger to the U.S. financial system and the broader economy. Specifically, Geithner wants powers similar...

My syndicated column today spotlights two related phenomenon: the Tea Party revolt on the streets and the “Going Galt” revolt with our wallets. For new readers who are just learning about the protest movement and want to join, the best organizational resources are Tax Day Tea Party (nationwide April 15 events), Twitter #teaparty, PJTV’s list of upcoming protests, Re-TeaParty (send teabags to Washington and find July 4 events), and TCOT Report. And one more good one: New American Tea Party. Some tinfoil-hatted kooks are still pimping their conspiracy theories about the movement. The latest: Aha! Malkin once gave a speech...

I am willing to send someone a copy of "Atlas Shrugged" with the condition that once they are finished with it, they will send it to someone else. I will pay the postage and would hope that the next person would do the same. Freepmail me if you want it.

Outside Edge: The book that’s in and out of fashion By Jonathan Guthrie Published: March 13 2009 22:08 | Last updated: March 13 2009 22:08 Who is Ayn Rand? The answer is critical to understanding Atlas Shrugged, the libertarian blockbuster written by this Russian-American author. A book of big ideas first published in 1957, it is selling strongly again. Its depiction of a US enervated by interventionism has struck a chord as Washington spends billions on bailing out banks and businesses. The literary device that underpins a plot Wagner would have considered over-elaborate is the question: “Who is John Galt?”...

President Barack Obama’s rapid race into socialism is creating an escalating tax revolt. With a never-ending stream of stimulus packages and new entitlement programs, the Americans who will be stuck with the bill are shouting a clear message: “Enough!” Many organizations are calling for a Tax Day Tea Party (http://taxdayteaparty.com/) on April 15. To Democrats, “the rich” aren’t paying their “fair share,” but many of the top 20 percent of wage-owners who pay 83 percent of the income taxes are taking to the streets. Yes, Obama is my president, and as Warren Buffett said, “We’re all in the same boat.”...

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...

Our President blames the Bush Administration. Many on Wall Street are now blaming Obama. Democrats blame Republicans. Republicans blame Democrats. Who really is at fault for our economic troubles? The answer is rather simple. Government and those that proclaim it can solve so many of our problems – regardless of their party. In 1959, in an interview with Mike Wallace, Ayn Rand posited that: “A free economy will not break down. All depressions are caused by government interference and the cure that is always offered . . . is more of the same poisons that caused the disasters.” Of course,...

The beauty of symbols is they can be appropriated for your ends. That's the power of John Galt. There are a lot of fools on the left and right who don't understand the symbol of John Galt. When they hear us at the tea party protests, they go back to the Cliff Notes of Atlas Shrugged and laugh at the idea of creating a Galt's Gulch, where the productive go to escape the confiscation of their labor. They dare us to withdraw our talents. They have the luxury of doing so because they've never had to carry the weight of...

There’s a new craze hitting the conservative tubes on the Internets these days: “Going Galt!” While it’s difficult to identify an exact date of reference or to provide any unique person with credit for the general meme, Michelle Malkin and Helen Smith certainly deserve honorable mention for recently popularizing the phrase. This movement seems to have manifested itself in two distinct, but related, forms: those who say, more-or-less, that “I ain’t gonna produce more that 249,999 dollars and 99 cents of taxable income” as well as those more accustomed to singing “Amazing Grace” than Twisted Sister taking to the streets...

"A genius is a genius, regardless of the number of morons who belong to the same race -- and a moron is a moron, regardless of the number of geniuses who share his racial origin."excerpts from "Racism"by Ayn Rand(An article published in the September, 1963 issue of The Objectivist Newsletterand included as a chapter in the book, The Virtue of Selfishness ) _____    Racism is the lowest, most crudely primitive form of collectivism.  It is the notion of ascribing moral, social or political significance to a man's genetic lineage -- the notion that a man's intellectual and characterological traits...