Some of you may wonder why I called my last posting "Godamn Gummint". I hadn't intended to after I'd finished the present version of the email. However, initially I was going to say something else. It started out being about a friend, a businessman, who is a devoted Ayn Rand follower, only he doesn't know it because he's never read or even heard of Rand. However, in his mind, anything government does, no matter what, is wrong. His favourite expression is "Godamn gummint!". As far as he's concerned, there should be no gummint! (I hope he doesn't read this.)
Ed ----- Original Message ----- From: Ed Weick To: 'RE-DESIGNING WORK, INCOME DISTRIBUTION,EDUCATION' ; [email protected] Sent: Friday, September 07, 2012 5:01 PM Subject: [Futurework] Godamn Gummint!! We've been hearing a lot about Ayn Rand and 'objectivism' now that Paul Ryan is Romney's choice for VP in the forthcoming US election, so I decided to find out what I could about Rand and her philosophy. I thought of reading "Atlas Shrugged" or "The Fountainhead", but when I looked at them at a local bookstore I found them far too thick and the print far to small. So I picked up a cheap little book of columns and comments that Rand and other Objectivist's had written a few decades ago. Interestingly, though not surprisingly, Alan Greenspan is one of the contributors to the book. The sections that I've read so far, written by Rand herself, deal with the role and purposes of government in an objectivist society. As Rand sees it, government's only role is to ensure the freedom of the citizen and to protect his property. That is why you need cops within the country and an army to keep out foreigners who might infringe on the citizen's freedom. Beyond these simple roles, government has no responsibilities. If people are inadequately housed, getting decent housing is up to them; if they are hungry, they should make some money and get some food; if they are ill, it's up to them to find and pay a doctor; and of course getting an education is up to them too; etc. Everyone should strive to rise to the top, but of course only the cleverest and most committed will. Above all, people should not depend on government, whose only role is to ensure that they are free to do the things they want to do. I could read on, but I may not. From an ideological point of view, It's interesting stuff, but using it as a basis for how government should operate in this complex, changing and globalized world could lead to massive mistakes such as budgetary restraints where stimulus may be needed, cutting back on important government programs or not initiating them, and catering to entrenched corporate interests. It's a rather extreme ideology which appears to have no place for common purposes or the reality that people really do care for one another. I find it scary that politicians could look upon it as a set of principles on which their programs should be based. Ed ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ _______________________________________________ Futurework mailing list [email protected] https://lists.uwaterloo.ca/mailman/listinfo/futurework
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