A whole new generation of Randroids on the way!

15 posts / 0 new

Tue, 2009-03-10 17:51

Snuckles

Quote:
Some products do comparatively well in times of recession: alcohol, chocolate, cinema tickets, cigarettes. But one surprise bestseller of the economic Armageddon is a decades-old science fiction novel about an imaginary economic Armageddon - popular now, its fans insist, because the collapse of civilisation it describes is on the verge of coming true.

Sales of Ayn Rand's 1957 book Atlas Shrugged - a hymn in praise of radical individualism, extreme self-interest and laissez-faire capitalism - are surging as the crisis deepens, according to TitleZ, a service that tracks sales trends on Amazon.

As of yesterday, the book's 30-day average rank on the website was 110, far above its average rank of 542 over the last two years. On 13 January it even briefly outperformed Barack Obama's wildly popular work The Audacity of Hope. Yesterday it was in 55th place, between The Reader and a book on cultivating very small gardens.

Read it [url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/mar/10/ayn-rand-atlas-shrugged]here....

Wed, 2009-03-11 11:41

Doug

But sceptics have described the threats of Galt-style tax boycotts as the rightwing equivalent of "moving to Canada".

Pretty much - and that's too bad. They'd be rid of this generation of economic mismanagers.

Wed, 2009-03-11 12:24

Sarann

Let's hope it disappears completely.

Wed, 2009-03-11 12:30

Fidel

Whatever crazy rightwing ideology they come up with next in the States, our poodles will be sure to follow

Wed, 2009-03-11 13:12

Ghislaine

I did read about so-called "right to strike" right-wingers who were going to cut back on work to ensure their income did not surpass $249,999 - to ensure they did not get their taxes raised. The ones in the story (which I cannot find at the moment) were a dentist and a lawyer. Both said they were going to work 3 days a week instead of 5 or 6 and just accept less clients.

But, I agree with Doug to an extent. However, it seems like the worst economic mismanagers are getting billions in corporate welfare while people lose their homes.

Wed, 2009-03-11 20:09

Michelle

I think those dentists and doctors and lawyers have the right idea. They'll have more time with their families, and less money to spend on useless shit that'll just go in the landfill. I'm down with that.

Wed, 2009-03-11 20:31

Lard Tunderin Jeezus Lard Tunderin Jeezus's picture

Ghislaine wrote:

However, it seems like the worst economic mismanagers are getting billions in corporate welfare while people lose their homes.

It seems like the worst economic mismanagers are cashing in all over again...

Wed, 2009-03-11 20:45

ElizaQ

True Michelle an unintended consequences.

I can't find the article I read. I think it might be the same one as Ghislane did. I think it was actually titled 'going Galt' or at least mentioned it in it. It wasn't so much them cutting back it was the idiocy of their calculations and reasons why. If it was just about cutting back work to spend time with family thats one thing. The women dentist made around 320,000 a year and said well I'm gonna cut back so I only make 250,000 so I don't have to pay these horrible and crazy new taxes. So what would her increase be? Something around an extra 2500 hundred dollars. So yeah that makes so much sense, forgo tens of thousands of income for want of 2500 bucks.... and to extend the unwritten meme that floating around right now...that the evil 'socialist' gubmint is stealing from our pockets. The way the article read was that this was some how significant and a threat to society blah blah and that we're supposed to feel sorry for them or something cause that women had to pay an extra couple of thousand and that she was making a rational decision. When I read it I shook my head, it sounded more like a bunch of whiny baby tripe. Boo f'in hoo, tiny violins and all that.

edited to add: I did try to find the article again but all the key words in google are bringing up too many links to sort through to Michelle Makin, Chuck Norris (the cells of patriots are awakin' ) and Glen Becks take back america, 'We Have Them surrounded' national coup event crap and all the blogs connecting it with this 'going Galt' meme that the Wingers are pushing right now.

Wed, 2009-03-11 22:19

wage zombie

I suspect that sales of Rand's books surge not when there's financial tough times, but when there's a Democrat in the White House.

Democrat in white house -> indignant wingnuts -> Rand book sales

Thu, 2009-03-12 12:48

#10

Ghislaine

Michelle wrote:
I think those dentists and doctors and lawyers have the right idea. They'll have more time with their families, and less money to spend on useless shit that'll just go in the landfill. I'm down with that.

That isn't their intention (from the sounds of it), but hopefully they will have some sort of realization about this if they do stop working so much

Fri, 2009-03-13 23:25

#11

Acadieman

I see the Small Dead Animals crowd seems to think Saskatchewan is ripe to be turned into Galt's Gultch

Sat, 2009-03-14 08:04

#12

Lard Tunderin Jeezus Lard Tunderin Jeezus's picture

Another take on the Rand revival

Sat, 2009-03-14 16:30

#13

wage zombie

Speaking of Glenn Beck's "We Surround Them" event, this youtube of a fox news clip is pretty hilarious (Beck gets mocked).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkMqvy-D5hM&eurl=http://www.dailykos.com/...

Sat, 2009-03-14 17:38

#14

ElizaQ

That clip with his own network guy between the lines mocking him is even more funny if you actually saw what came next. I watched a bit of that from replays on the net. It's propoganda at it's absolute best.

Here's the first part if anyone cares to watch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9KXBwVVSK8U

You even get to see Beck get all teary cause he cares so much about the little guy. It's was like a really, really bad and truely warped Hallmark tv movie.

Sat, 2009-03-14 19:08

#15

wage zombie

That's propaganda at its worst, ugh i feel sick. Wish i hadn't watched it.

Beck pretending to cry, "Excuse me, i just love my country so much." Ugh, disgusting, and i bet people will lap it up.