[DMB]:
Ayn Rand fans aren't to be taken seriously as thinkers.
Says who? Philosophy department professors who are 85% self-proclaimed
liberals?
Rand is considered one of the three founding mothers (along with Rose Wilder
Lane and Isabel Paterson) of modern American libertarianism, although she
rejected the Libertarian movement itself. She was instrumental in
establishing the Ludwig van Mises Institute as a world source of economic
theory and the basis of the prestigious Chicago University School of
Economics now associated with Milton Friedman, Alan Greenspan, and other
distinguished 20th century economists. Her statement that "Racism is the
lowest, most crudely primitive form of collectivism" fueled the integration
movement in the U.S. Her philosophy of Objectivism has spread across the
U.S., Australia, Canada, Israel, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Norway,
and remains popular among student groups.
She was also voted "worst novelist of all time".
The success of a novel is measured by its reader appeal, not reviewers'
votes. Rand's best-selling novel "The Fountainhead" was a worldwide
success, selling six million copies at the rate of about 100,000 per year.
It was made into an award-winning motion picture by Warner Brothers using
the author's script. Following its success, Rand wrote screenplays for two
other movies, Love Letters and You Came Along. "Atlas Shrugged", published
in 1957, went on to become an international bestseller, and (according to
Wikipedia) "...has been cited by many interviewees as the book that most
influenced them". (It certainly had that affect on me!)
Would-be intellectuals would be wise to keep their admiration to
themselves
or, better yet, re-think that fondness.
Is this an injunction from on high, David, or does it reflect your own
anti-conservative views?
I'm not an objectivist, but I don't think an informed intellectual can
seriously discount the influence Ayn Rand has had on philosophy, social
polemics, and the arts. Nor does a "true intellectual" have to be told what
to read.
--Ham
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