1957 was an important year for investment analysts. That was the year that Harry Markowitz published his Modern Portfolio Theory and later won the Nobel prize. It was also the year that Ayn Rand published Atlas Shrugged and changed America. Perhaps, that was a hyperbolic over-statement but Ms. Rand would have loved it, as she often used them.
Fifty years ago, in 1961, I read Atlas Shrugged for the first time and became a fan. It is a story of America in 2016 where the most successful businessmen keep disappearing, only to find they had gone "on strike" to protest the ever increasing corruption and over-reach of the government.
It became the intellectual basis for conservative Republican politics and helped launch the Libertarian Party in 1971, the survivalist movement in the late 1970s, and the Tea Party in 2008. For a brief time in the very early 70's, I even considered using my Special Forces training as a survivalist to combat the government takeover that I presumed was imminent.
I realized how much her writing has influenced America when it was pointed out to me that every supply-side economist was an ardent fan of Ayn Rand.
In 1992, the film rights for this book were sold, but the film didn't get released until April 15th of this year. Unfortunately, the film promptly bombed, and theaters stopped showing it almost immediately. I was finally able to buy a copy on DVD and watched it last night.
One explanation for the poor performance of the movie was that it only covered the first half of the book, and the viewer is left hanging; a not very satisfactory ending to any story. Another explanation is the increasing disdain for partisan issues among the wider population, which is understandable. Of course, serious Ayn Rand fans allege a government plot to release other movies at the same time, that were better than this one, which I consider ridiculous.
I thought the film was technically great, with good acting and great imagery. Yet, it showed government not as an oppressive force, which was Rand's belief, but more as a tool for corrupt business leaders to use against other business leaders.
As much as I appreciate her work and the thoughts she gave me decades ago, I drifted away from her philosophy when I watched it being hijacked for political purposes. Ayn Rand was a small girl when her wealthy family fled Communist Russia for the United States, carrying the memory of an oppressive Communist dictatorship. She saw the rise of unions in this country as analogous. She could foresee America going the route of Russia. But, don't we all know that Russia and Communism have both failed? The chances of that happening in the birthplace of Capitalism is zero.
The philosophy of Ayn Rand is called objectivism and is similar to existentialism in that it places great emphasis on the individual, whose path to greatness is not possible without maximum freedom from government control. But, she wrote with hyperbolic over-statements for dramatic purposes, not for political purposes?
A hammer is a tool. It is neither good nor bad. It is just a tool; sometimes useful, sometimes dead-weight, but just a tool. Governement is just a tool. It is neither good nor bad, just a tool. It deserves neither love nor hate. It just needs to be controlled, like a hammer. And, Ayn would agree!
Fifty years ago, in 1961, I read Atlas Shrugged for the first time and became a fan. It is a story of America in 2016 where the most successful businessmen keep disappearing, only to find they had gone "on strike" to protest the ever increasing corruption and over-reach of the government.
It became the intellectual basis for conservative Republican politics and helped launch the Libertarian Party in 1971, the survivalist movement in the late 1970s, and the Tea Party in 2008. For a brief time in the very early 70's, I even considered using my Special Forces training as a survivalist to combat the government takeover that I presumed was imminent.
I realized how much her writing has influenced America when it was pointed out to me that every supply-side economist was an ardent fan of Ayn Rand.
In 1992, the film rights for this book were sold, but the film didn't get released until April 15th of this year. Unfortunately, the film promptly bombed, and theaters stopped showing it almost immediately. I was finally able to buy a copy on DVD and watched it last night.
One explanation for the poor performance of the movie was that it only covered the first half of the book, and the viewer is left hanging; a not very satisfactory ending to any story. Another explanation is the increasing disdain for partisan issues among the wider population, which is understandable. Of course, serious Ayn Rand fans allege a government plot to release other movies at the same time, that were better than this one, which I consider ridiculous.
I thought the film was technically great, with good acting and great imagery. Yet, it showed government not as an oppressive force, which was Rand's belief, but more as a tool for corrupt business leaders to use against other business leaders.
As much as I appreciate her work and the thoughts she gave me decades ago, I drifted away from her philosophy when I watched it being hijacked for political purposes. Ayn Rand was a small girl when her wealthy family fled Communist Russia for the United States, carrying the memory of an oppressive Communist dictatorship. She saw the rise of unions in this country as analogous. She could foresee America going the route of Russia. But, don't we all know that Russia and Communism have both failed? The chances of that happening in the birthplace of Capitalism is zero.
The philosophy of Ayn Rand is called objectivism and is similar to existentialism in that it places great emphasis on the individual, whose path to greatness is not possible without maximum freedom from government control. But, she wrote with hyperbolic over-statements for dramatic purposes, not for political purposes?
A hammer is a tool. It is neither good nor bad. It is just a tool; sometimes useful, sometimes dead-weight, but just a tool. Governement is just a tool. It is neither good nor bad, just a tool. It deserves neither love nor hate. It just needs to be controlled, like a hammer. And, Ayn would agree!
