Ayn Rand discovered THE correct philosophy of life.

One who spent some time studying philosophy and have at least an average IQ, should know her mumbo jumbo is not even close to any real philo-sophies.

Living out your days on social security after railing against it for years is the perfect philosophy?

While married, she had an affair with a married man. Was this part of her philosophy? I truly don't know, but if so, I think she had at least that as a crummy element of her philosophy. If not, then she probably failed to live up to her ideals.

I remember I had to read a story by her my freshman year. The theme of it was a lightbulb? I don't really remember. One thing I did learn is that Ayn Rand really hates her own sex.

I think it was one of the many books I used SparkNotes for. The only thing I read without SparkNotes is Gateway Pundit, LetsRun, and InfoWars.

The pseudo-conservatives who name-drop Ayn Rand have probably never read that stuff because her books are a mind-numbing bore. A few cliched characters and then endless pages of banalities. If you can get through one of her books as an intellectual pursuit, you deserve a medal. Few have.

It is fiction, by the way. A lot of idiots don't seem to grasp that.

I see someone just finished reading The Fountainhead for their AP Literature class.

But seriously, I enjoyed reading her work and I think rugged individualism is all well and good for self motivation and ‘rah rah’ inspiration but the fact that her work has been co opted by libertarians and non intervention economists is bogus. The ideas set forth in fictional books and her essays should not be applied to public policy.

Her name was A. Rosenbaum. She came up with a snappy clever name so White Gentile boys would worship her.

Soviets either under Lenin or Stalin took her father's business for the greater good, so A. Rosenbaum became a hard right anti-government type.

There was no rigorous scholarship by A. Rosenbaum. It so happened Milt Friedman's family suffered a similar fate under Lenin or Stalin. Friedman built mathematical models to justify much of Rosenbaum's nonsense. If one knows what they are doing, one can tweak variables of models to get mathematical forecast models to say a lot.

Raggedman wrote:

Living out your days on social security after railing against it for years is the perfect philosophy?

This. She was an unsuccessful writer in her time and reading her work will show you why. She did not live the ideal that is attributed to her, nor has anyone else because it is ridiculous.

Here is an article about an attempt at a Libertarian Paradise.

Ayn Rand was a Russian immigrant who lived from US welfare and wrote bad books.

A. Rosenbaum was her real name wrote:

Her name was A. Rosenbaum. She came up with a snappy clever name so White Gentile boys would worship her.

Soviets either under Lenin or Stalin took her father's business for the greater good, so A. Rosenbaum became a hard right anti-government type.

There was no rigorous scholarship by A. Rosenbaum. It so happened Milt Friedman's family suffered a similar fate under Lenin or Stalin. Friedman built mathematical models to justify much of Rosenbaum's nonsense. If one knows what they are doing, one can tweak variables of models to get mathematical forecast models to say a lot.

2nd welfare theorem implies for a suitable redistribution of endowments, a competitive equilibrium is socially efficient. She asserts that there is no benevolent dictator, and you assert she is biased as was Friedman.

Socialism is just an excuse for misapplications of the 2nd Welfare Theorem, as are all forms of taxes and transfers outside of highly competitive markets.

Her ideology was no more wrong that Plato's Republic; it is an ideology to help identify the potential pitfalls that transfers of wealth induce, whereas she recommends persistent investment in one's own human and physical capital.

So, if reallocation of endowments renders a socially efficient outcome to be a competitive equilibrium, then one can use Coase's Theorem to see that social efficiency can obtain without social equity.

I was not clear in on this in the previous post. The first welfare theorem is that competitive equilibrium is pareto efficient, and this is straightforward for diminishing marginal utility because the price ratio between any two goods remains fixed throughout the possible endowments, However, with the price ratios fixed, it may require a reallocation of endowments in a pareto efficient market to achieve the competitive equilibrium implied by the given prices.

Coase realized that people assume social efficiency implied social equity, but if a person feels wronged but must pay to stop from feeling wronged, a temporary state of social efficiency can occur. These bribes, pecuniary or non-pecuniary, are what Ayn Rand was describing in The Fountainhead, and Howard Roarke (the architect) refused to give in. He eventually forced a social efficient outcome that was also deemed socially equitable. Coase's Theorem is from his 1960 peer-reviewed research article, many years after Rand wrote her books.

"Correct philosophy" is close enough to an oxymoron to give me a spot of angst.

nopenever wrote:

Ayn Rand is ignored and despised in an utterly irrational society because she stands for reason.

The thing you can guarantee with the political right is that if they read anything that confirms their prejudices they will claim to have discovered the meaning of life.

LibertarianParadise wrote:

Raggedman wrote:

Living out your days on social security after railing against it for years is the perfect philosophy?

This. She was an unsuccessful writer in her time and reading her work will show you why. She did not live the ideal that is attributed to her, nor has anyone else because it is ridiculous.

Here is an article about an attempt at a Libertarian Paradise.

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/21534416/free-state-project-new-hampshire-libertarians-matthew-hongoltz-hetling

That was an amazing story. However, we don't know what the results would be in an area with less bears or more firearms.

Ayn Rand’s philosophy is something a 19 year old or 105 IQ pseudo intellectual would read and think is very groundbreaking. “If I just do what’s best for me, the world will be better!”

bryan evans wrote:

LibertarianParadise wrote:

This. She was an unsuccessful writer in her time and reading her work will show you why. She did not live the ideal that is attributed to her, nor has anyone else because it is ridiculous.

Here is an article about an attempt at a Libertarian Paradise.

https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/21534416/free-state-project-new-hampshire-libertarians-matthew-hongoltz-hetling

That was an amazing story. However, we don't know what the results would be in an area with less bears or more firearms.

Yeah, Firearms would not only defend human from bears, but also human from other human. Look at places like Tokyo and Singapore to see how dangerous it is to deny people's right to bare arms.

One of my few absolutes in this world is that anyone who says they are guided by "reason" (or, even worse, REASON) is not to be listened to. They have been among the most irrational and annoying people I've ever met.

But, obviously, this is my fault. Because, REASON (tm).

nopenever wrote:

Ayn Rand is ignored and despised in an utterly irrational society because she stands for reason.

She is the philosopher equivalent of crappy fast food and rayon, short sleeve dress shirts.