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Nazareth, Pa., United States

Tuesday, May 01, 2012

Ayn Rand's NIZ Commentary

"When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion - when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing - when you see money flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors - when you see that men get richer by graft and pull than by work, and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you - when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a selfsacrifice - you may know that your society is doomed." - Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged (1957).

She saw saw the future of society - quite specific to Allentown - in 1957.

34 comments:

Jon Geeting said...

Ayn Rand? Seriously?

Bernie O'Hare said...

Certainly more serious than you.

Anonymous said...

silly man

small business dude said...

Great quote. But it's not just Allentown, it's our whole country. Can you say "wall street bailout"?

Anonymous said...

I'm surprised Geeting knew who Ayn Rand was. I'll bet he had to Google it.

AMOrlando said...

I did not have you pegged for an Ayn Rand aficionado. But good quote.

AMOrlando said...

And the book is an interesting read. But people like Geeting despise Rand because she called out their socialist utopian goals long ago.

Anonymous said...

"...and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you..."

Which of our fine, civilized, bi-partisan, common-grounders is out in front with a bold plan to change this?

-Clem

Bernie O'Hare said...

AMOrlando, I'm not really a fan. In the end, I think her philosophy is a tad too selfish. That quote was actually forwarded to me by someone who, despite reading and admiring Rand, rew up to be a liberal Dem.

Anonymous said...

She wasn't selfish. She thought government denied her the right to choose how much and to whom she would give charity. She's right. Social medicine in England, for instance, caused charity hospitals to close. The same will happen here, as religious institutions are forced to surrender ethics or close. I paid the equivalent of my daughter's gross salary in state and federal taxes last year. I paid this to a government that already spent the money and is having lavish Vegas boondoggles with mimes and mind readers. Meanwhile, those requiring help get little or none. Throwing programs is not charity. It steals from the pool of individual charity dollars.

Bernie O'Hare said...

I concluded she is somewhat (not completely) selfish and that she creates a ridiculous version of government so she can scoff at it. I also find little humor in her writing. But she tells a great story and many of her ideas make sense. No system of philosophy, standing alone, is perfect.

Anonymous said...

Retired ASD teacher here.

Very appropriate quote. Sums up my concerns. Should she still be with us, her current quote would charge biased media coverage with aiding and abetting.

There was a time when we enjoyed some measure of protection from our newspaper and television watchdogs. Yes, Ayn's future is here.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Retired ASD, I disagree w/ Tony Rhodin, Deegan and the ET editorial board. I also think the MC editorially has attempted to smear Atiyeh. But the actual reporting in both papers has, in my opinion, been excellent on this issue.Let's not forget that it is Kraus and Assad who woke us all up to the EIT tax grab.

Anonymous said...

"A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. For the traitor appears not a traitor – He speaks in accents familiar to his victims, He wears their face and their garments, He appeals to the baseness that lies deep in the hearts of all men, He rots the soul of a nation, He works secretly and unknown in the night to undermine the pillars of the city, He infects the body politic so that it can no longer resist.
A murderer is less to fear"
Marcus Tullius Cicero 42BC

Anonymous said...

Every one of the most hated entities in American life is heavily regulated. From insurance to health care to cable companies to airlines, when the government gets involved, they serve consumers worse. Government can screw up sleeves on a vest. The early workings of the NIZ have already proven this. It'll only get worse from here.

Anonymous said...

We act as if the story of gov't intervention in our lives is new. The story of our nation is filled with these stories. The tension is a back and forth dynamic. We act as if the Fed is a new creation, that Social Security passed without opposition or that decision outlawing segregation were popular at the time. It's good to reference history in discussing what is the appropriate role of gov't. But anybody who claims that history has been a straight-line lesson in one view point versus another is simply ignoring history.

Anonymous said...

Those, like Rand, who oppose government handouts because they cost 90 cents to administer every dollar and exacerbate the plight of those they were intended to help are somehow deemed selfish. If your form of charity doesn't go through proper government channels run by public union employees, Bernie's pretty sure you're selfish. That's the logic that says the Allentown Rescue Mission is not worthy because it may require the hungry to endure a sermon and prayer while eating their bologna sandwich.

Anonymous said...

O'Hare and his Tea Party agenda.

Crazy Tea Baggers

http://www.lvtp.org/component/content/article/43-conservative-commentary-from-around-the-country/429-ayn-rand-and-the-tea-party-a-recipe-for-cultural-change.html

Anonymous said...

"Crazy Tea Baggers"

Sorry.

I just do not feel like buying tickets to Chairman Pawlowski's 220.0 million dollar Palace of Sport with MY MONEY today.

Probably not tomorrow, either.

Maybe Obama can ram another law through or something like that and make me in the future but, until then ...

Anonymous said...

"Crazy Tea Baggers"

Where is the Civility?

JUST SAY NO TO THE NIZ

Anonymous said...

Bernie, you've been hit by conservative/libertarian Rand adherents and potty mouth flea bagger liberals for the same post. I bet you're grinning. Congratulations on a great post.

Anonymous said...

Ayn Rand? Bwahahahahahaa!!

Anonymous said...

Ayn Rand suckled the teat of the collectivist government welfare system like everyone else.

Ayn Rand took government assistance while decrying others who did the same

Anonymous said...

Every one of the most hated entities in American life is heavily regulated. From insurance to health care to cable companies to airlines, when the government gets involved, they serve consumers worse. Government can screw up sleeves on a vest. The early workings of the NIZ have already proven this. It'll only get worse from here.

Yes horrible! Like the interstate highway system. A disaster! Social Security insurance, a travesty! Medicare, people dying in the streets. The United States Armed Forces - a bunch of government morons!

Anonymous said...

You nailed it, love that you posted this!

Bernie O'Hare said...

"Ayn Rand suckled the teat of the collectivist government welfare system like everyone else."

Not a compelling argument. Because a priest is human and sins, does that mean we should all sin? I'd rather review her philosophy on its own merits than attack her, especially since she is dead.

Bernie O'Hare said...

"Congratulations on a great post"

Just spreadin' the love.

Bernie O'Hare said...

"O'Hare and his Tea Party agenda.

Crazy Tea Baggers

http://www.lvtp.org/component/content/article/43-conservative-commentary-from-around-the-country/429-ayn-rand-and-the-tea-party-a-recipe-for-cultural-change.html"


I resented and criticized the local tea party when it attempted to have a book removed from the curriculum at EASD. It's one of the reasons they tried to excommunicate me.

But just as much, I resent phony liberals who look down their noses at books that raise intelligent questions and tell good stories.

Afraid of ideas?

Bernie O'Hare said...

"Bernie's pretty sure you're selfish."

Actually, I said i thought Ayn Rand's philosophy is "somewhat" selfish. It does not rule out altruism completely. I think she'd agree.

small business dude said...

Anon 1043

Just replace "traitor" with "career politician" and you have a perfect description of what is going on. From the lefty loonies to the righty nut jobs -all the crazies will have you believe its the other parties fault. That is incredibly naive. Both political parties and the politicians who run things only care about their own power and wealth, which is stolen from the rest of us.

Anonymous said...

To the 1043 AM -Anon....

Excellent Quote, this is presently occurring in Washington...Treason from with-in.
At present European Governments are changing weekly due to poor economys.
Nations with-out borders cannot survive.

Anonymous said...

Yes, everyone has read The Fountainhead, BOH. When they were 14 and actually were naive enough to buy it's premise. But people mature and become part of a society and realize just how ridiculous Ayn Rand's views really were. I see you are regressing.

Anonymous said...

Bernie
Any Rand intentionally accessing the government benefits which she decried her entire life is the height of hypocrisy. You say this is not compelling because a priest may sin. Poor analogy, not least of which is the point that it could be a momentary weakness. The larger point is that she was the architect/leader of her movement. This is more like finding out that Jesus didn't turn the other cheek

Bernie O'Hare said...

"When they were 14 and actually were naive enough to buy it's premise."

Obviously, you need to spend a little less time writing and a little more time learning basic grammar.