Another political post- politics everywhere right now and I'm getting a little riled up.So feel free to ignore me. It might be a good idea because when I talk about Ayn Rand I spiral ...
Onward...
Since Paul Ryan was selected as the vice presidential nominee, Ayn Rand has been everywhere. Apparently Paul Ryan, along with many Republicans, has recommended Ayn Rand books and been seen as a follower of hers. Now that he's in the spotlight, Ryan is trying to distance himself from her because she's extreme and also because her philosophy really does NOT jive with the republican philosophy-especially as the party stands today. Reading and liking Ayn Rand has become the mark of the conservative republican. It's frustrating the crap out of me.
I read Atlas Shrugged in high school and fell completely in love with it. The idea that a person's happiness should be their life goal is a fantastic thing. And that is the essence of Ayn Rand's philosophy- each person's happiness is his or her right and responsibility- that I do not owe someone else their happiness anymore than they owe me mine. I find this notion to be basic and true.
I do not agree with her on everything but I do know that I don't appreciate the republican party claiming her as their own.
Ayn Rand also advocates for reason and individuality as basic tenets of her philosophy- which is called Objectivism and is much more closely aligned with Libertarian politics than Republican politics.
Ideals that match up -theoretically- with the Republican party include advocacy of market capitalism, a desire to return to the gold standard, the repeal of the income tax, smaller government, and (I'm guessing on this one but pretty sure) reduction of entitlement programs. Ayn Rand hated taxes- she felt that the money someone earned honestly and through their own hard work should be their own. The reason I say that these ideals align theoretically with the Republican party is that Ayn Rand dealt with absolutes. If one is assuming that the people running companies got there by working their asses off and being intelligent- she believes they have every right to their success. However, we know that the world is not as black and white as Ayn Rand would have it be. The devil here is in the details and I don't know that she would be impressed by the men and women claiming her ideals today.
Ideals that have Ayn Rand cursing in Russian in her grave- banning gay marriage, banning abortion, ANYTHING to do with forcing Christian morality on the country, any claim that the United States is a Christian nation, any attempt to keep people from voting.
The issue at hand here is that the Republican party has chosen the individual as their hero, the idea of the self-made man as their ideal and that's something I can get behind and that most people can support. However, a person stops being an individual and stops having the right to make their own choices as soon as we cross over to social policy. Fiscally, Rand is convenient because she advocates deregulation and free market capitalism. But Republicans are backing themselves into a corner by saying that freedom and individual rights are their paramount concern while also insisting that the idea of two men marrying is hurting America. She starts with very basic tenets of rational self-interest and an individual's right to his or her own life. These things CANNOT be reconciled with the christian morality and extreme disregard for individual freedoms that are officially part of the Republican party platform.
Below is a clip from The Daily Show that demonstrates nicely and in a simple way how these ideas of american individuality and freedom clash against the official policy stances of the party.
| The Daily Show with Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| RNC 2012 - The Road to Jeb Bush 2016 - The Republican Platform | ||||
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More Daily Show- Ayn Rand scholar discussing the Republican party's relationship to the author over the years.
So yes, I clearly lean liberal (did the 2 daily show clips give it away) and I don't claim to adhere to all of Ayn Rand's principles but I think the things she stood for are at their base good things and I don't think the Republican party of today has any claim to such moral high ground.
I strongly recommend that everyone read Atlas Shrugged. I know it's a fat bastard of a book and it looks intimidating but the story will pull you through. You might not love it, but it's good to have a reference because as Jennifer Burns says in the interview-whenever the country is struggling ideologically she comes up.
Rant over.
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