The Rand Formula

Perhaps 30 or 40 years ago I read The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged.  I can't recall either of them making much of an impression and I certainly did not fixate on the most singular part of those novels - Ayn Rand's philosophical system which she called "Objectivism".  How could I have missed that?  Meh.... philosophical systems... advocates and apologists for greed and selfishness....

Ayn Rand.  Hard to say how many North Americans know of or care about the person behind this name.  She was born in 1905 in Russia, moving to the United States in 1926.  She was an author, known for The Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged.  Aside from that, she is also known for the philosophical system called Objectivism.  Anyone wanting to know more can easily learn more, but I suspect most people won't really care.

A few American politicians seem to have swallowed Rand's philosophy completely as a justification for their view of the world.  It seems as though they represent some of the more regressive factions in American society and politics, but that's just my opinion....

I've felt, either correctly or not, that Rand's philosophy, and Rand herself, espouse a self-centered, selfish, viewpoint.  What I can't understand  is why Ayn Rand is still a thing.  I'm not the only one apparently.

If Ayn Rand ever sent Christmas cards, they might have looked like this.  I've had one local Randian (is that what we call her acolytes?) agree that those cards reflect her philosophy perfectly.  Wonderful.

Some have wondered if Rand's philosophy has contributed to some of the "uncharitable" attitudes that we hear about from time to time.  Or, to put it more succinctly, turned us into a greedy, selfish, nation.  Well, that's the USA...surely couldn't be Canada....

One opinion about her philosophy's effect in America can be found here.  You want to see what Randian philosophy looks like when put into practice?  Look no further than the state of Tennessee.  Close to the bottom in anything one could call socially progressive and near the top when it comes to child poverty.  Charming statistics.

I've had a few exchanges with one of Rand's local supporters.  He's claimed that the only (sorry - that should read "ONLY") reason anyone does anything is as a result of selfish self-interest.  Altruism does not exist.  Really?