4 ms·

Wow, reads like Atlas Shrugged. Could easily happen in this country. I feel bad for the 45% that didn't support the socialists.

by madengr 10y ago

Jtsummers 10y ago
> Could easily happen in this country. Which country?
sxcurry 10y ago
Well, not exactly like Atlas Shrugged, because the article is well written and coherent.
- angersock 10y ago
  And short.
  - vixen99 10y ago
    All of which goes to show that a novel can be highly influential and immensely successful albeit that it's badly written, incoherent, very long and subject to scathing critiques as in: "There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year-old's life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs." - John Rogers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_Shrugged https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_Shrugged
    - ktRolster 10y ago
      That's not a scathing critique, it's a joke. It resonates well with people who already dislike Atlas Shrugged (including myself), but it doesn't convince anyone. Those who like Atlas Shrugged will read it, maybe laugh, then correctly point out that it's not a well-reasoned argument, it's a joke.
      - xenadu02 10y ago
        True enough. Plenty of legitimate criticisms are available... The main character is apparently great though she built nothing; her father did all the work. The complete discounting of the workers who do the actual laying of rails and running of trains. Galt steals IP that rightfully belongs to his employer (and was developed with his employer's resources). The fact that they'd all die of starvation or be reduced to subsistence farmers in Galt's Gulch. The book is a hilarious caricature of reality.
nikdaheratik 10y ago
I think socialism is the "excuse" rather than the root cause: which is poor government that ran on cronyism and petro-dollars and is completely stuffed after decades of mismanagement. The main difference between this and a number of other governments is that it's happening in the Western hemisphere and not some corner of Africa or the Middle East.

Wow, reads like Atlas Shrugged. Could easily happen in this country. I feel bad for the 45% that didn't support the socialists.

by madengr 10y ago

Wow, reads like Atlas Shrugged. Could easily happen in this country. I feel bad for the 45% that didn't support the socialists.

Jtsummers 10y ago

> Could easily happen in this country. Which country?

sxcurry 10y ago

Well, not exactly like Atlas Shrugged, because the article is well written and coherent.

angersock 10y ago
And short.
- vixen99 10y ago
  All of which goes to show that a novel can be highly influential and immensely successful albeit that it's badly written, incoherent, very long and subject to scathing critiques as in: "There are two novels that can change a bookish fourteen-year-old's life: The Lord of the Rings and Atlas Shrugged. One is a childish fantasy that often engenders a lifelong obsession with its unbelievable heroes, leading to an emotionally stunted, socially crippled adulthood, unable to deal with the real world. The other, of course, involves orcs." - John Rogers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_Shrugged https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlas_Shrugged
  - ktRolster 10y ago
    That's not a scathing critique, it's a joke. It resonates well with people who already dislike Atlas Shrugged (including myself), but it doesn't convince anyone. Those who like Atlas Shrugged will read it, maybe laugh, then correctly point out that it's not a well-reasoned argument, it's a joke.
    - xenadu02 10y ago
      True enough. Plenty of legitimate criticisms are available... The main character is apparently great though she built nothing; her father did all the work. The complete discounting of the workers who do the actual laying of rails and running of trains. Galt steals IP that rightfully belongs to his employer (and was developed with his employer's resources). The fact that they'd all die of starvation or be reduced to subsistence farmers in Galt's Gulch. The book is a hilarious caricature of reality.

nikdaheratik 10y ago

I think socialism is the "excuse" rather than the root cause: which is poor government that ran on cronyism and petro-dollars and is completely stuffed after decades of mismanagement. The main difference between this and a number of other governments is that it's happening in the Western hemisphere and not some corner of Africa or the Middle East.