The Newsleaders
  • Login
  • Register
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Sartell – St. Stephen
    • St. Joseph
    • Sports
  • Opinion
    • Column
    • Editorial
    • Letter to the Editor
  • Community
    • Calendar
    • Citizen Spotlight
    • Criers
    • People
  • Notices
    • Funerals/Visitations
    • Obituary
    • Police Blotter
    • Public Notices
    • Support Groups
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Submissions
  • Archives
    • Sartell-St. Stephen Archive
    • St. Joseph Archive
  • Advertise With Us
    • Print Advertising
    • Digital Advertising
    • 2021 Promotions
    • Pay Invoice
The Newsleaders
No Result
View All Result

PineCone Pet Hospital MillerCarlin Serving all of central Minnesota locations!

Albany: 320-845-2035
Holdingford: 320-746-9994
St. Cloud: 320-252-7004
Upsala: 320-573-6234
Toll-free: 1-800-644-4058
Collegeville Stearns Bank
Home Opinion Column

Ryan’s budget reflects Rand’s silly philosophy

June 20, 2012
in Column, Sartell – St. Stephen
0
0
SHARES
0
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

In the world of Ayn Rand, there is a handful of super-achieving capitalist heroes, and then there’s the rest of us – the moochers, looters and parasites (three of Rand’s favorite words).

In the world of Rep. Paul Ryan, there are the righteous money-making capitalists, and then there’s the rest of us – moochers, looters and parasites.

It’s no wonder Ryan has credited his enthusiasm for Rand’s philosophy for his decision to run for Congress. His budget reflects her value system – utterly unrestrained free-market forces, the “lone” capitalist hero as the pinnacle of a society, the evils of government and the folly of any social contracts (including any -ism but capitalism).

Ryan is not the only politician Rand has influenced. One of her “disciples” is Alan Greenspan, former Federal Reserve chairman. She has a legion of admirers, especially among the Far Right and some Tea Party folks. Since her influence is growing fast, people might want to make an effort to learn about Ayn Rand. Her first name rhymes with “pine,” for starters.

She was born in a Jewish family in Russia. After the Communist revolution, the Soviets confiscated her father’s pharmacy. She was keenly aware of the forced collectivization policies, as well as a vicious civil war and starvation. Her biographers note that Rand was a brilliant but very lonely child who lived largely within her own mind. Later, she was able to enter college, which is an irony because the Bolsheviks, whom she hated, made college possible for women, including Jewish women. She studied history and screenwriting.

When Rand emigrated to America, she saw the skyscrapers of Manhattan and it was love at first sight. She became a diehard defender of capitalism and wrote two blockbuster novels, “The Fountainhead” and

“Atlas Shrugged.” Both feature lone-wolf geniuses locked in a struggle to achieve great things, despite the mediocre, unvisionary parasites who try to hold them down. In those novels, Rand expounded her philosophy, which she called “Objectivism.”

The sole “good” in a society resides in its individual titans – men (and presumably women) who through supreme intelligence and enlightened egoism create great things – self-interest being the noblest goal in life. The hero of “The Fountainhead,” for instance, is a visionary architect.

Rand was an atheist, a defender of abortion rights, an enemy of anything altruistic, an opponent of all state controls and a champion of laissez-faire capitalism and individual rights above all. She won a lot of arguments because she controlled the terms and conditions, no matter who was playing. Through the years, some admirers defected from her camp, calling her a virtual cult leader.

To Rand, logic was everything. It explained everything, including emotions. She was like an iron-clad logic machine, often interviewed on talk shows. A short woman with large piercing black eyes, she sometimes wore a kooky pointed hat on top of her close-cropped wavy hair. A chain-smoker, she claimed tobacco warnings were a bunch of hooey. Later, she required a lung-cancer operation. She died in 1983 of heart failure.

Toward the end, she decided – much to the disappointment of her adherents – to apply for Social Security and Medicare, even though she had often blasted them as programs for moochers.

Like her or hate her, Rand was an interesting cultural icon – a kind of wacky seer. Her philosophy is interesting – on paper. In the real world? Silly. OK, so we have a handful of visionary geniuses. What about the rest of us? Do we become the wage slaves of those titans? If we can’t make it as entrepreneurs, do we steal and plunder to survive?

Ryan’s budget plan is interesting, too – on paper. Slash spending, axe social programs and be sure – above all – to give those great visionary achievers – the super-rich – more tax breaks. What about the rest of us in the real world?

Previous Post

13B canidate for Minnesota House of Representatives

Next Post

Kennedy celebrates last day of school with carnival

Next Post

Kennedy celebrates last day of school with carnival

Please login to join discussion

CMCU Twitter Follow us on
Twitter
for the latest news!
Facebook Follow us on Facebook
for the latest news!
calendar Click here
to view our
calendar
of events!

Go Fund Me # 1 Thank You
Newsleader
Supporters!
Elizabeth Brunsvold
Cultural Connections
Jim Berg & Mary Kruger
Mary & John Davis
Sandy Denne
Bobbi & David Gouker
James & marry Graeve
Juliana Howard
Julia Joplin
Linda Kmitch
M. Molus
Sheila Nahan
Go Fund Me # 2 Thank You
Newsleader
Supporters!

Peggy & Michael Roske
Judy Scheuerell
Geraldine Schwab
James Stotko
James Towler
Anna Trobec
Kaye Wenker
Ellen Wahlstrom
Leona Wieland
Jeanie Wilkens
GAGEN & VASUGI RAMANATHAN
Go Fund Me # 3 Thank You
Newsleader
Supporters!
Nicole Borg
Erica Karger-Gatzow
Dane & Lori Listug-Lunde
Nadine Martin
Doris Minnerath
Merry Mund
Marilyn Peitso
Stephen Schwanke
Dianne Tuff
Dale Zacher
Private Donors

Search

No Result
View All Result

Categories

Recent Posts

  • 6 candidates selected for Sartell-St. Stephen superintendent
  • Kluesner appointed to St. Joseph City Council
  • Wood sentenced for killing two children
  • A list of school superintendent finalists expected March 1
  • Sartell man injured in snowmobile crash

City Links

Sartell
St. Joseph
St. Stephen

School District Links

Sartell-St. Stephen school district
St. Cloud school district

Chamber Links

Sartell Chamber
St. Joseph Chamber

Community

Calendar

Citizen Spotlight

Criers

People

Notices

Funerals/Visitions

Obituary

Police Blotter

Public Notices

Support Groups

About Us

Contact Us

News Tips

Submissions

Advertise With Us

Print Advertising

Digital Advertising

2021 Promotions

Local Advertising Rates

National Advertising Rates

© 2021 Newleaders

No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • Sartell – St. Stephen
    • St. Joseph
    • Sports
  • Opinion
    • Column
    • Editorial
    • Letter to the Editor
  • Community
    • Calendar
    • Citizen Spotlight
    • Criers
    • People
  • Notices
    • Funerals/Visitations
    • Obituary
    • Police Blotter
    • Public Notices
    • Support Groups
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Submissions
  • Archives
    • Sartell-St. Stephen Archive
    • St. Joseph Archive
  • Advertise With Us
    • Print Advertising
    • Digital Advertising
    • 2021 Promotions
    • Pay Invoice

© 2021 Newleaders

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In