The Perelman interview portion was informative and interesting, as usual with you. However regarding the article as a whole:
1. As an 18-year old affected by reading Rand, saying Atlas Shrugged is about railroads is like saying The Sopranos is about running a family business. It just misses the music. There is a reason the book continues to sell and change lives. 2. I am not sure I understand the context for the criticism of Rand, because I don't there is any real difference between Rand's view and Perelman's view regarding the history of the railroads, in that they both agree that the industry and its development were dominated by political entrepeneurs. Not having read Perelman's book, curious of his view of James J. Hill, who, unlike his competitiors, built a trancontinental railway without public subsidy, and never went bankrupt, unlike all of his competitors. Hill was allegedly an inspiration for one or more of Rand's protagonists. Together with the Fogel/North evidence that the massive diversion of 19th century capital to US railroad construction added little to historical wealth creation, people like me view the historical difficulty of railroad profitablity to be one not of perfect competition that could only be solved by regulatory consolidation and regulation, but what happens when the government chooses a winner in adva! nce and subsidies the hell out of an industry. Eventually the economic reality that the investment was a bad idea in the first place manifests itself. David Shemano --- Original Message--- To: Progressive Economics <[email protected]> From: michael perelman <[email protected]> Sent: 5/02/2011 5:27PM Subject: [Pen-l] Obviously, I spelled Rand's name wrong, sorry >> http://www.alternet.org/teaparty/150740/why_ayn_rand_and_her_legion_of_followers_ >> are_hopelessly_wrong/ >> >> -- >> Michael Perelman >> Economics Department >> California State University >> Chico, CA >> 95929 >> >> 530 898 5321 >> fax 530 898 5901 >> http://michaelperelman.wordpress.com >> _______________________________________________ >> pen-l mailing list >> [email protected] >> https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l >> _______________________________________________ pen-l mailing list [email protected] https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l
