Atlas Shrugged a Requiem?
One of the most interesting points discussed in Objectivist circles is, of course, the prediction of how the current USA compares to that depicted in the novel. The question that arises quite consistently is how far the US can slide into the Peoples' State before the dramatic end to that system. I have heard predictions from others, some of whom never read AS, that we are slated for a financial crash, an oil drought, a terror attack, martial law, etc. How true or likely is this claim? And can we, as educated Objectivists, lend insight to when or how this could occur?
https://www.galtsgulchonline.com/post...
Of course, as history has unfolded, that would have thus far been an expression of ignorance rather than wisdom - a dropping of context while claiming the embrace of same.
Baring nuclear exchange, the ideas that gave birth to our beloved America, continuing in their obscene destruction, will precipitate the endless injustices associated with our suicide.
However, human nature and our ability to take advantage of it, individually and collectively, will continue to make the rot as "slow" as possible. That "slowness" after all, is what Galt hastened.........
Will there be a sudden economic collapse that precipitates any or all of the dire consequences cited by others who understand the folly underway? Perhaps. On the other hand and contrary to views of many, those who now wield unprecedented political power know perfectly well what is underway. They will continue to do whatever is necessary to prevent such a sudden disaster.
However, no one can control what will, at some point, become uncontrollable.
Meanwhile, each of us should live our lives to the fullest, as we try to teach our progeny while setting examples for our fellow citizens. Examples that demonstrate REALITY - in its most naked and "innocent" of lights.
To my fellow Objectivists: Lead with your life not just with your mouth. If a picture is worth a thousand words, an example is worth ten thousand.
Never give up to such an obscene and impotent foe - i.e., as Roark replied to Toohey, "but I don't think of you Ellsworth."
Dave
Where I take hope is that it is only in the largest cities where people are largely divorced from the realities of life who overwhelmingly vote for Progressives. I also take hope in the fact that the Progressives are severely undermining one of the major groups that they would need to effect a major takeover in the Police Departments. By supporting the BLM ilk and their rioting and looting, they alienate one of the single greatest groups they would actually need. The other are the armed forces, which because the US runs on a voluntary military are staunchly patriotic. What the Progressives would have to do is to create their own army of brown-shirts (hailing back to Stalin/Hitler) and literally create civil war in order to really take over.
Or they can simply do what they have been doing for 100 years: persuade stupid and thoughtless Americans that they can invent money and jobs out of thin air. Why change what works, right?
Of course, what I really think they are doing is intentionally creating the circumstances for a wide-scale economic collapse so they can ride in like saviors, impose martial law, and force everyone into a re-enactment of the feudal system where they see themselves as the ruling class.
Earlier you wrote "Our money is worthless in fact now". Why are you still able to exchange it if it is worthless? Kind of a dishonesty there if you are doing a con job on ignorant people by giving them something you know to be worthless for something of worth. Buyer beware is not something to take advantage of with those who do not understand with your great wealth of wisdom.
My only reason for using the "pie" reference is to disparage STATISTS who have NO dynamic thinking or understanding how the economy works. Of course, there is NO PIE. THEY think there is, so they must steal from ALL to get theirs. Because if they don't, they will get NONE due to their being a bunch of malcontents and complete inability to think of work as anything other than LABOR rather than OCCUPATION.
Yes, the economy grows when the conditions are set for the government to stay away as I was referencing above in my first "pie" comment. The economy shrinks when government, in all its INFINITE (delusional) WISDOM inserts itself into it.
Real pies are interesting and mirror what happens in a governed system. As a group, a family, say, has a mother, a father, children, and possibly other live in persons. In my family, as a child, my mother made good chocolate pies with a tasty whipped topping. As a child I could see no good reason to wait to eat it as a desert but mother was the governor and kept rules as to how to use the pie so that there was no runaway in the family economy. I and my siblings and especially my father would have had the pie gone before desert time. Government is that way, a way of keeping a country from overheating and coming apart in warring factions. Wouldn't want all those little real pies to be ruined by others before the owners decided what to do with them.
A little hint. No SHOUTING is necessary for emphasis.
And, no all thinking is NOT dynamic. Here is a definition I found that explains it well:
Dynamic thinking is the study of the interconnected relationships on an event and the impact of those interactions upon the outcomes of the system.
Leftists don't know nor care about the impact of their group-think "sacred cows". 56 Million aborted babies quite likely slowed the progress of MANY things not least of which might have been real cures for terrible diseases. Someone not born from the 1970's quite likely could have or would have found the cure for lung cancer or breast cancer or leukemia. Leftists SAY they care about others and curing diseases. However, they never think about the genocide they promote with their lock-step "choice" to kill the unborn. Though I LOVE babies, it is some comfort to me that it is quite likely mostly future leftists being aborted rather than conservatives. Cruel thought but true.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO - an acronym, not an emphasis) as far as I've heard, ALWAYS score tax cuts without taking into account my point above, national happiness (which can't be quantified) and the boost in productivity (which ALWAYS happens but also is very hard to quantify). This is why the leftists and statists ALWAYS use CBO numbers to state that ALL tax cuts COST the government money when that CLEARLY is NOT the case. This is also why it is SO much easier to THINK and argue like a leftist than it is for conservatives to make their points. DYNAMIC thinking is too hard for leftists to understand and is even harder for conservatives to try to explain these things to the dullards. There are some conservatives very skilled at teaching, but they also must have a healthy dose of courage in this climate.
I think you and I mostly agree but tend to butt heads on some fine points. LOL, have a nice evening!
What really backs it up currently is basically blind trust, thats all. Trust can evaporate overnight and result in your dollars become worthless. Check out the venezuelan money- same thing.
If dollars held by foreigners return to the US economy, it will depend upon what they buy. If new industry and labor though some price rises by suppliers. If competing with domestic dollars for goods, then like an inflation of the money supply since those dollars have already been duplicated by the FED, there would be price rises and some loss of trust in the currency. Suppose gold or some other commodity were held by others outside the domestic economy. Then when it was exchanged for good, it would act as with currency and gold investments might lose some trust due to loss of trust if it loses exchange value. Trust is very dynamic.
I agree. I suspect at least 10% today are still willing to risk our personal wealth and safety for the cause of liberty.
By the way, since political hacks have destroyed the concept of Sacred Honor, where do the American people go to get theirs back?
Hillary will be our next President. There's your answer...
Let's say the govt can't meet it's obligation on paying the interest on the debt, the Fed Res keeps manipulating the markets and the bubble that a lot of the financial manager's keep talking about bursts then in the ensuing chaos the conditions will right for the 10%. The other alternative which I believe in is that Secession of the States will occur.
I'm still optimistic, though, because in many ways we've moved forward in personal liberty. We're much less tolerance of bigotry and violence. We've moved forward in those areas. When the next big human crisis hits, let's say when someone sets off a crude nuclear bomb in DC, and we are ready to turn over all liberty to the gov't, I hope the same impulse that has reduced violence and bigotry will make us not give up freedom.
Empires collapse from within, but outside events, not infrequently encouraged by the perception of weakness and corruption in the empire, can accelerate the collapse. Russia senses an opportunity to regain a more prominent position on the world stage, convinced the U.S. will always shrink from serious confrontation. China also smells American fear, but is conflicted about endangering its best customer. One driver toward a clash with China is the imbalance between male and female sexes in China, with over four million young men in excess. Such a testosterone driven pool of resources cries out for violent conflict. Battles with China's neighbors, like India and Vietnam may be the outlet, but America can't remain distant from such clashes.
We will remain the primary target for Islamic terrorism, and a Clinton open borders policy will invite a larger population of terrorists to inflict an increasing number of casualties. Even if we successfully stamp out ISIS in the Middle East, there will be a diaspora of experienced terrorist fighters eager for revenge.
Clinton's hawkish attitude, arrogance, and stupidity in foreign relations will leave us further buried in conflict, deeper in debt, and without allies. Even if she does not succeed in implementing all of her policies, civil conflict will grow quickly, possibly leading to martial law and the end to American liberty. A new civil war will be slow to start, given the American public's implied consent to growing government power, but a tipping point toward violence is possible.
Trump is not invulnerable to events out of our control, but he stands a better chance of avoiding catastrophe. Whether he can be effective enough to save the republic is hard to say.
There you go...full circle and still no definitive answer.
Maybe...just maybe...it'll collapse when "We" stop adapting, when "We" give up...it'll collapse when "We" collapse...Maybe? Just a thought.
It would be "they", the system, the establishment, the paradigm...,... that would collapse.
Over the fifty years since I first read Atlas Shrugged, I have sometimes thought that the end was near, but even today, for it to come near to conditions in Atlas Shrugged, it is not even close. For the citizen, it is possible to freely do most anything which the government in its great wisdom has not outlawed do to being too dangerous, including loving, frying ones brain with legal drugs and with every known irrationality, eating too much, and every other thing that some still cannot get banned. My recommendation would be for everyone to stop pretending that there is a really essential difference between harm from accidents and from intentional acts. For example, the killing of 20+ children in a school shooting was intentional and considered reason to clamp down on individual rights, while on average weekly the same number of children of the same age group have their lives snuffed out by automobile related accidents without a call to stop the freedom to drive. Death and accidents are just one of the risks for deciding to live one life. Improvements in the rates can be had with thought as in medicine, new ideas, etc. Just do not give up liberty and the free will that goes with it.