Is this true of the state of our government?

[DubiousIntentions]

Yes? No? Your thoughts.

Yes

No

here is what I think - - -

[slatyb]

Ayn Rand's philosophy and economic theory works very well on planets where there are limitless raw materials that can be extracted with no inconvenience to anyone, and where there is an infinite sink for unwanted byproducts of production.

In our world, raw material extraction and waste disposal always affects others, and must be regulated.
In the US we tried it the other way and industry grossly polluted the air, land, water, and people in the name of profit. Then we passed the Clean Air and Clean Water acts and forced them to dispose of their waste more considerately. I grew up near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, a steel-making center for many decades. The air pollution and water pollution from steel making and other sources was beyond unpleasant. In 1948 smog from air pollution killed 20 people in Donora. That's why we need government to regulate the market and the environment.


This is even more true now with four times as many people on the planet as there were when Ayn Rand was writing.

[DubiousIntentions]

And how did Government Regulations pan out in Pennsylvania. Isn't it still polluted? Why is it that the polluters don't pay to clean up their messes instead of the Superfund Sites.

[slatyb]

It worked very well. The air and waters in the Pittsburgh are clean. There are fish in once dead rivers like the Kiskiminitas.

[DubiousIntentions]

Don't worry. When Biden makes everyone get electric cars Pennsylvania will be polluted by coal plants generating electricity once more.

[slatyb]

No it won't. There will be no new coal. plants built. Wind and solar are far cheaper.

[abc3643]

Ayn Rand, author of "The Fountainhead" and "Atlas Shrugged" was seriously fucked in the head.

======

“There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year old’s life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs."

[Kung Fu Monkey -- Ephemera, blog post, March 19, 2009]
― John Rogers

======

The problem with libertarianism and objectivism is that these are naïve philosophies.

For more, see my answer to this question from 3 days ago:

Should this Be the New National Anthem?

[LiamJHayden]

The only thing naïve about libertarianism is the expectation that people would be willing to stop trying to freeload off others by perverting the law into an instrument of plunder.

[abc3643]

@LiamJHayden Libertarianism is naïve because, if you think hard about it, it led to the world we have today. That's what I tried to explain in the earlier question.

[Daniela1982]

Sounds spot on to me. I'm sure she would have expanded more on that had she been around today.

[exitseven]

I have heard of this book but never read it. It is really eerie how she hit the nail right on the head. We are seeing people like Biden an McConnnell who have never had a real job in their lives getting unbelievably rich by selling favors. These guys have no idea how to run a business or live within a budget. They make a modest salary yet are able to afford multiple million+ dollar residences.

[LiamJHayden]

She had some major flaws, but here she is spot on. Even George McGovern spoke to this when he tried, and failed, to run the Stratford Inn in Connecticut. It failed due to absurd laws enacted by politicians who knew nothing about business.

[Bricealan]

I currently am attempting to read; "Atlas Shrugged". Such a long read, and I have been trying to read it for several months. I find it is not a 'page turner' but want to understand her feelings about "objectiveness", which was supposedly her intent.

[jshm2]

Atlas shrugged is a work of fiction, kiddo. But often treated as parable - when it is not.

What Ann is describing is capitalism in a nutshell. But it still works.

[Luopio27]

That is a trick question for dumasses like me. When we deal with highly inteligent women we literally dont know what to say, do, think or feel.

• Im not gona blame you or women for my inability to understand them.

[Luopio27]

This is where tricky question meets a tricky answer.

[Sixgunsound]

Benjamin Franklin warned us even earlier that the doom of the Republic is the point at which people realize they can vote themselves a living!

[Guy13]

That’s frighteningly relevant on a large scale today…

[OddBeMe]

It’s so vague like Nostradamus people try to make that into magic. It’s apt for the time she lived in. And more compounded now.

But you know, it ain’t that bad earning money by skills rather than labor. Brain over brawn.

[Anonymous]

I'd say that's the state of our leftist run government.. The vast majority of the left wouldn't understand hard work if it bit them in the ass. Why do you think the vast majority of rich elites are leftist? Because leftists protect their own.

[AngryCarl2]

Yes, of course Rand was talking about Communism. However it applies equally to any system that is institutionally corrupt.

[Pudsmucker]

This is going on right now in our society. Howard Ruff said things similar in his book, "Fame and survival in America".

[joeldalton]

100% correct. That’s why they’re so blatant about it. They know there’s nothing you’ll do about it.

[InsecureLivesMatter]

Anything that has Ayn Rand tagged to it is something I take with a grain of salt

[DJB72]

Yes, but Orwell said it better

[DubiousIntentions]

Never read 1984 myself.

[DJB72]

It's heavy reading. I read it at school and watched a couple of versions on film. There's so much more in the book though.

[Dargil]

More often than not yes.

[KostasKouvalis]

That sounds dead accurate

[Jennz6]

Yes she is probably right

[Anonymous]

All I know is that they look like a tranny.

[Dav1dTh0ma389]

Trump is the best example of this

[Snakeyes7]

She's spot on!

[Anonymous]

Yes completely true