hno:
The non-productive members of society (looters, government and moochers) make it more and more futile for the producers/innovators of the world to produce/innovate and place a greater stigma on them for doing so, so they slowly disappear, strike and quit producing. Without their minds, work, innovation and production, society goes to hell in a hand basket.
I don't want to give too much away, but that is a very brief cliff notes version. Definitely worth reading, it is the second most influential book ever written for a reason. Don't read the wiki entry, it will give away too much. If you enjoy reading, educating yourself and social philosophy, you should definitely read it. It is 1200 pages, so be prepared, the first 200-250 pages can be a bit slow, but it is a great book and picks up steam once the settings are set. Very influential book in my life and very fitting for the current economic, political and social environmental.
Parlayin, Fountainhead doesn't compare to AS. Writing and philosophy remain the same, but far more interesting and far better story/characters.
Sounds interesting. My economic and political philsophies are a work in progress. My upbringing was very conservative, and I've always leaned that way, but the Democrats make some very good points when they say that the middle class has to do well in order for everyone to do well. I know that if I made 500K a year, my motivation wouldn't be decreased if I had to pay 40% instead of 33%.
The thing I've been thinking about is how irresponsibility drives the economy. If everyone pinched pennies and didn't buy things they can't afford, this economy would get worse. If everyone saves, then nobody makes any money.
illini AS will really make you think, and struggle with, your economic philosophies. you cannot deny Rand's point in the book but you can deny loony republicans who say that they represent what it is that she puts forward.
the problem is that neither side has much more of a grip than you or i. not only that but a ton of them are crooked which hits home with AS as well.
the problem is that neither side has much more of a grip than you or i. not only that but a ton of them are crooked which hits home with AS as well.
They should always be a work in progress, and if you are interested in exploring them, you absolutely should read this book. While it is political, it isn't a political/book about politics. It is much more philosophical, societal and economic. Rand was an atheist who believed in free markets and individualism. There is plenty to disagree with in her works and philosophy, but they should be required reading. Her philosophy is called Objectivism, here is a brief explanation.
My philosophy, in essence, is the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievement as his noblest activity, and reason as his only absolute.
<cite style="font-style: normal;">—Ayn Rand<sup id="cite_ref-rand_2-0" class="reference">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Objectivism_(Ayn_Rand)#cite_note-rand-2</sup></cite>
Objectivism holds that reality exists independent from consciousness; that individual persons are in contact with this reality through sensory perception; that human beings can gain objective knowledge from perception through the process of concept formation; that the proper moral purpose of one's life is the pursuit of one's own happiness or rational self-interest; that the only social system consistent with this morality is full respect for individual rights, embodied in pure laissez-faire capitalism; and that the role of art in human life is to transform man's widest metaphysical ideas, by selective reproduction of reality, into a physical form—a work of art—that he can comprehend and respond to.<cite style="font-style: normal;">—Ayn Rand<sup id="cite_ref-rand_2-0" class="reference">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Objectivism_(Ayn_Rand)#cite_note-rand-2</sup></cite>
Whatever you do, do not read Fountainhead first and do not read Anthem in an effort to "see if you like her writing". I did that and it wasn't until close to 10 years later that one friend told me that was a horrible idea.
