.. should not be allowed to post in The Soap Box.



and yeah, I'm talkin' to you.

5/20/2008 6:41:21 PM

Haha, I know exactly what you mean.


FUCKIN FAGGOT COLLEGE KID

5/20/2008 7:50:42 PM

typical liberal horseshit

If liberals actually read Atlas Shrugged instead of the Communist Manifesto, 90 percent of the world wouldn't be as fucking destitute as it is.

5/20/2008 8:05:26 PM

what about liberals that read neither?

5/20/2008 8:11:36 PM

then you're just ignorant.

5/20/2008 8:36:41 PM

what about liberals that read both? never mind, i'll answer:


Marx appealed to the people of a still-changing and as-yet unformed era (post-industrial).

Rand appealed to the people of the still-changing and as-yet unformed brains (post-adolescent).


both should be dismissed as antiquated cultural curiosities.






[Edited on May 20, 2008 at 8:46 PM. Reason : ]

5/20/2008 8:43:05 PM

then I ask you how far in between those two systems is your optimum

5/20/2008 8:45:22 PM

chembob is ignorant cause he hasnt read [insert book he hasnt read here]

5/20/2008 8:46:30 PM

^^^yea, i can definitely see that in their works

^dnl, that's a very short list.

5/20/2008 8:56:17 PM

the writing of Ayn Rand should be moved to the dustbin of history.

5/21/2008 7:40:24 AM

im an individual goddamn it

5/21/2008 9:03:49 AM

Quote :

"the writing of Ayn Rand should be moved to the dustbin of history."

5/21/2008 9:10:14 AM

The Ayn Rand Institute is running its annual Atlas Shrugged college essay contest

FIRST PRIZE: $10,000
3 SECOND PRIZES: $2,000
5 THIRD PRIZES: $1,000
20 FINALISTS: $100
20 SEMIFINALISTS: $50

"Judges will look for writing that is clear, articulate and logically organized. Winning essays must demonstrate an outstanding grasp of the philosophic meaning of Atlas Shrugged."

Hmmm... I guess that would leave out some Wolf Webbers wouldn't it?


http://www.aynrand.org/site/PageServer?pagename=education_contests_atlas

5/21/2008 10:01:00 AM

why are they requiring clear, articulate, and logically organized writing when the person whom the contest is in honor of couldn't even do that?

5/21/2008 10:06:24 AM

got to tell ya

i enjoyed both anthem and the fountainhead

5/21/2008 10:32:17 AM

I immensely enjoyed Anthem. Objectivism's whack. But that book was pretty awesome.

5/21/2008 10:52:43 AM

I liked The Fountainhead when I read it in middle school. I read Atlas Shrugged in High School and thought it was tedious. I read Anthem a few weeks ago and hated it.


Maybe I just grew out of that Objectivism stuff.

5/21/2008 11:05:14 AM

^
You out-grew reason and self-determination?

5/21/2008 11:16:16 AM

I would say he did.

5/21/2008 11:19:42 AM

You think Ayn Rand has a monopoly on reason?

5/21/2008 11:22:07 AM

I use to bash Ayn Rand

that was until I actually read her...

and then I realized that a lot of smart, very leftist, people dislike her because she is VERY anti-socialist

and because of her politics they tend to bash her actual writing, which is unfair

she's a very good writer and gets her philosophy through quite well in the novels I've read

5/21/2008 11:24:36 AM

5/21/2008 11:25:48 AM

Quote :

""Judges will look for writing that is clear, articulate and logically organized. Winning essays must demonstrate an outstanding grasp of the philosophic meaning of Atlas Shrugged." Hmmm... I guess that would leave out some Wolf Webbers wouldn't it?"

harhar. Atlas Shrugged is WAY overhyped. Id love to write something clear, articulate, and logically organized on something WORTH writing about. Its not hard to grasp the "philosophic meaning" of this novel. It is also not hard to see though this read for what it is, which is nothing monumental in the least bit.

Dont act as if this book is so deep that the people who dont like it obviously dont understand it

[Edited on May 21, 2008 at 11:30 AM. Reason : ]

5/21/2008 11:29:12 AM

i havn't read Atlas Shrugged all the way though

but my guess is it's about great men doing great things

and that chafe's 99.99% of people

[Edited on May 21, 2008 at 11:32 AM. Reason : lol, grain]

5/21/2008 11:31:33 AM

It gets really fucking BORING about 2/3rds the way through.

Shit's just too long.

5/21/2008 11:35:55 AM

yeah, that happens

5/21/2008 11:36:07 AM

Quote :

"You think Ayn Rand has a monopoly on reason?"

NO.. but with fewer and fewer people embracing reason, she may end up owning the franchise.

but I do agree that the book could've been cut down a few dozen chapters.

5/21/2008 11:54:54 AM

Quote :

"If liberals actually read Atlas Shrugged instead of the Communist Manifesto, 90 percent of the world wouldn't be as fucking destitute as it is."

the world needs more moderates.

here you sit calling liberals communists and liberals are calling conservatives facists

both of you are wrong.

5/21/2008 11:57:17 AM

^ well, thats about the most intelligent thing ive seen from you yet. and here all this time i thought you were a Bircher.



[Edited on May 21, 2008 at 12:56 PM. Reason : ]

5/21/2008 12:56:32 PM

lol

btw, what's a bircher?

5/21/2008 12:59:18 PM

If I have my Schmoeism interpreter set correctly I'd guess he is referring to the John Birch society.

5/21/2008 2:44:19 PM

you know what's scary?

i actually agree with maybe even half of JBS positions, in principle.

unfortunately, the other half is a batshit mix of anti-communist conspiracy theories a la Dr. Strangelove, anti-immigrant tirades, and right-wing flag-waving pseudo-religiosity.








[Edited on May 21, 2008 at 6:14 PM. Reason : ]

5/21/2008 6:09:38 PM

^Mein Fuerher! I can valk!

5/21/2008 6:10:30 PM

Quote :

"the writing of Ayn Rand should be moved to the dustbin of history."

Quote :

"why are they requiring clear, articulate, and logically organized writing when the person whom the contest is in honor of couldn't even do that?"

gg

5/21/2008 10:21:38 PM

I think her writing is clear enough. Like many others, my main complaint with the book is the repetition and length. The first few chapter convey the philosophy sufficiently. You can see where the story's headed. She proceeds to bludgeon you senseless by weight of words. The majority of the text shows how awesome the free capitalists are and how pathetic the looters are. Nothing legitimately challenges the heroes or their ideology. The world unfolds according to objectivism, precise down to the last detail.

5/21/2008 10:41:38 PM

I think it's funny that 90% of the population dismisses Objectivists/libertarians as nutjobs, then complain when the people they elect take away their rights and waste their money.

5/21/2008 10:53:59 PM

I got Ayn Rand mixed up with Anne Rice.

I'da been like, "WHERE'S THE SEX AND VAMPIRES!?!?!!"

Quote :

"You out-grew reason and self-determination?"

I gave up on those things a while ago, and let me tell you...IT...IS...AWESOME!!!

You've gotta try it!!!

It's the only way to live, B.

5/21/2008 11:33:49 PM

^^ and *I* think it's funny that 90% of the Objectivists/libertarians go to state-subsidized community colleges/universities and/or live in their parents' basement, all the while complaining how the "fascist welfare state" wastes their tax money, even though they don't actually pay any taxes themselves because they're still mooching off their parents and the state.

seriously. the grown-ups have already tossed their Ayn Rand books into their neighborhood yard sale bin, long ago.



[Edited on May 22, 2008 at 1:00 AM. Reason : ]

5/22/2008 12:55:18 AM

No, all objectivists make $texas via the free market because they deserve it. They eat bacon and eggs for breakfast every morning because soy is an inherently unworthy and communist vegetable. In fact, I'd say tobacco could be the only capitalist plant. A carton of smokes a day keeps the looters away.

5/22/2008 1:01:28 AM

^^

uhh... have you ever been around business types?

they ALL talk like what she expounds upon

not to say that they really achieve what she is talking about, but a lot of them strive to be the "go getter types" often times losing themselves in the collective she hated so much

...

trust me, many a professional has jacked off to an ayn rand book...

[Edited on May 22, 2008 at 1:14 AM. Reason : ...]

5/22/2008 1:13:37 AM

The dude who gave me a copy of Atlas Shrugged abandoned objectivism soon after. He went to a conference. Seeing Rand's other followers quickly convinced him he didn't belong in that scene.

5/22/2008 1:44:01 AM

Quote :

"No, all objectivists make $texas via the free market because they deserve it. They eat bacon and eggs for breakfast every morning because soy is an inherently unworthy and communist vegetable. In fact, I'd say tobacco could be the only capitalist plant. A carton of smokes a day keeps the looters away."

word




[Edited on May 22, 2008 at 12:40 PM. Reason : ]

5/22/2008 12:40:03 PM

Let me sum up Atlas Shrugged:

World falls to socialism and collapses

John Galt delivers a speech thats fifteen god damn pages long (skipped it)

Ayn Rand definitely harbors rape fantasies (more apparent if you read Fountainhead)



Counterpoint:

All of history since the books were written.

5/22/2008 12:54:24 PM

Quote :

"A carton of smokes a day keeps the looters away."

Brilliant. That might be the shortest summary of Atlas Shrugged I've ever seen.

Seriously though, for all her many flaws, and those of her work, Ayn Rand has gotten more people thinking about rational self-interest, about the danger posed by altruists who lack understanding, about the unintended consequences of government intervention in the marketplace, about the forceful nature of government, about the sanction of the victim, and a host of other still-relevant topics than any other author.

She may have been shrill and hyperbolic, she may have been a mystic in her own right, she may have been redundant and long winded, she may have been blatantly inconsistent, she may not have said anything worth saying that hadn't already been said better, but goddamn it, she said it, and people are still reading it to this day. That's something.

I'll freely admit to having enjoyed Atlas Shrugged.

[Edited on May 22, 2008 at 4:23 PM. Reason : /]

5/22/2008 4:23:14 PM

Quote :

"The Ayn Rand Institute is running its annual Atlas Shrugged college essay contest FIRST PRIZE: $10,000 3 SECOND PRIZES: $2,000 5 THIRD PRIZES: $1,000 20 FINALISTS: $100 20 SEMIFINALISTS: $50 "Judges will look for writing that is clear, articulate and logically organized. Winning essays must demonstrate an outstanding grasp of the philosophic meaning of Atlas Shrugged.""

lol my mom tried to get me to do this when I was in high school

5/22/2008 7:48:19 PM

Quote :

" and *I* think it's funny that 90% of the Objectivists/libertarians go to state-subsidized community colleges/universities"

I think there's a place for public education and helping young people grow up in general. But there's still a lot of wastefulness and social & economic injustices IMO.

5/22/2008 8:52:12 PM

Those are rather impressive prizes for a writing contest. Objectivists got money, I guess.

5/22/2008 9:08:08 PM

Reading Atlas Shrugged and The Fountainhead is just a waste of time. If you want to "get" Rand's philosophy just read Anthem and save yourself 2000 pages of the least subtle writing you'll find outside of Melville.

5/22/2008 9:21:10 PM

Ayn Rand has a lot of self-hate issues about being a woman. All of her female characters are weaker than the lead in a Harlequin novel, and Rand makes lots of generalizabilities towards women as a whole based on her own insecurities.

5/22/2008 9:51:26 PM

^^

i enjoyed The Fountainhead though

ok

5/22/2008 9:54:25 PM