Ayn Rand and Atlas Shrugged...

not always what it seems.

While it appears that the country is on some sort of  "I adore Ayn Rand" movement, the truth of who she was and what she believed is not always fully comprehended.

To begin with, Ayn Rand, as documented by many of her biographers, was a bit of a tyrant in her dealing with others, which is fairly inconsistent with what she espouses.  And certainly her personal life could not be held to a high moral standard.  Setting aside her morals (since who of us is perfectly moral) it can be said that she lived what she preached; a life of rational self-interest.

So what's wrong with rational self-interest?  Well, on its face, it's an irrational concept.  In order to seek one's own self-interest, you must also unselfishly allow others to do the same.  Rather contradictory, don't you think?

That's only the beginning of some of the problems regarding her philosophy.  Ms. Rand believes that "existence exists" - a concept that's impossible.  I can exist and you can exist, but existence itself cannot exist. Existence has no properties.  You cannot describe existence, you can only describe or give properties to something that actually exists.When you say "existence exists", you are actually saying nothing exists, which is a form of nihilism.

To put it in simple terms, Ms. Rand is essentially saying we all should do what's best for ourselves, and that we have a right to live in such a manner.  The problem is, sooner or later my rights are going to bang right up against someone else's rights.  The only way to resolve that little conflict is to add the caveat, "as long as what you do doesn't harm another."  But wouldn't we need to practice unselfishness for that to be workable?


Insight posted a fine article a few days ago,  "Ayn Rand's philosophy is unlivable, either by her or anyone else." that is well worth a read.


And my buddy Mark (who won't be going to see Atlas Shrugged) has this to say:

 Part of the problem with politics on the Right nowadays is that conservatism is being conflated with all sort of ideologies that are not consonant with a conservative approach to politics. A weak form of libertarianism is hard enough to fit into a conservative approach to politics, but in the the form that Ayn Rand proposed it is pure battery acid to any understanding of community, tradition and ordered liberty.  Rand's elevation of selfishness into a virtue rather than a vice is profoundly at odds with the conservative vision of shared life in a community. read the rest

Well said, Mark.

So what's going on with conservatives who are delving into Ayn Rand's philosophy, and getting all starry eyed?  It's really quite simple.  All of us, myself included, tend to cherry pick.  We see something that fits our world view, make a grab for it, and hang on for dear life.  Snippets of Ms. Rand's philosophy, retrieved mainly from her novels, resonate with the conservatives of this country and they're willing to overlook the parts that cause alarm.  After all, it was Nathanial Branden, her lover and colleague, and others, who really did the bulk of the codifying of Objectivism. 

"Atlas Shrugged" is playing in Spokane right now, and I'm quite certain it will show up at the theater in Coeur d' Alene.  While I wouldn't bother to drive to Spokane (it is 20 miles, after all), I will probably see it when it hits Coeur d' Alene - mostly out of curiosity.