How Many Bricklayers Did Galt Invite to the Gulch?
Galt went around inviting famous artists, noted business leaders to the Guch, but once there, who built their houses? Who paved their streets, dug their sewer lines?
This isn't a class warfare argument; the building of a house, for example, not only takes a skilled architect, but also skilled craftsmen and industrious laborers.
If the criterion for admission is a belief in "trading value for value", surely Galt should and would have invited "ordinary" workers to the Gulch as well as luminaries like Wyatt and Danagger?
Such people exist lower down on the ladder; people who believe in trading value for value, but lack the creative ability to invent a new motor or miraculous metal. People who didn't inherit an already successful railroad or copper mines, but would be able to get a day's worth of coal or copper dug in a day's worth of hours for a day's worth of pay. Maybe they lack the ambition to go through the headache of running a company when they get more satisfaction from digging coal out of the ground. Maybe they lack the self discipline necessary to see their visions to reality, but are still able and still believe in trading value for value.
What Utopians always underestimate in their rhetoric (no disparagement of Ms Rand intended) is the example America set before them. People's abilities and worth are not necessarily evidenced by their position in life. All the creative brilliance in the world will not get a brick wall built. A brick wall built without knowledge and skill won't stand, but the most creative and brilliantly designed wall will never exist without someone to lay it up brick by brick. Someone whose creative skill may be shrouded by prejudice toward his position in life.
There may not be a place in the Gulch for someone like me. But that would be Galt's loss.
This isn't a class warfare argument; the building of a house, for example, not only takes a skilled architect, but also skilled craftsmen and industrious laborers.
If the criterion for admission is a belief in "trading value for value", surely Galt should and would have invited "ordinary" workers to the Gulch as well as luminaries like Wyatt and Danagger?
Such people exist lower down on the ladder; people who believe in trading value for value, but lack the creative ability to invent a new motor or miraculous metal. People who didn't inherit an already successful railroad or copper mines, but would be able to get a day's worth of coal or copper dug in a day's worth of hours for a day's worth of pay. Maybe they lack the ambition to go through the headache of running a company when they get more satisfaction from digging coal out of the ground. Maybe they lack the self discipline necessary to see their visions to reality, but are still able and still believe in trading value for value.
What Utopians always underestimate in their rhetoric (no disparagement of Ms Rand intended) is the example America set before them. People's abilities and worth are not necessarily evidenced by their position in life. All the creative brilliance in the world will not get a brick wall built. A brick wall built without knowledge and skill won't stand, but the most creative and brilliantly designed wall will never exist without someone to lay it up brick by brick. Someone whose creative skill may be shrouded by prejudice toward his position in life.
There may not be a place in the Gulch for someone like me. But that would be Galt's loss.
Previous comments...
Are you saying that if you sweat it's labor and you've earned it, but if you work where you don't sweat as you work, you don't earn your higher pay????
I'd say dollars earned by honest means are equally earned - even if sweat is not involved. If I buy 10,000 widgits and convince somebody to pay me double for all of them the next week, I've earned my profit. Wall St operates the same way. "Money is a tool that allows us to trade with one another" - sound familiar? Francisco AS2 Wedding speech.
But yes, stealing can be hard work too.
So you give your money each week or month (or your employer does it for you via the communist party - I mean union) to a guy who you've never met or spoken to because he promises you that he will take your money, invest it for you, and you don't have to ever think about it again, but that it will grow into vast riches without you ever doing a thing, or thinking about it. Then one day you are told that some evil guy has been living large while you worked. And you are surprised????? Really??????
How about taking personal responsibility and managing your own money. Then when you blow it because you don't have time to do a good job, at least you can look in a mirror and blame the right person.
Or you find a local person who does this work, you turn the job over to him, cut out the union (who gets a cut of every dollar - what? You think they do it for free???). Tell the boss you don't want him to take out those dollars every week and give it all to the guy who you can look in the eye, call on the phone, bang on his door, etc.
Social Security?? You don't believe in Santa Clause too, do ya?