Ayn Rand, Paul Ryan and the issue of morality
In a more fact-based world, the centrality of Ayn Rand to Paul Ryan’s perspective on the world would be undeniable. She is, so to speak, the fountainhead from which much of his political thought flows. But rather than take my word for it, listen to Ryan himself, just three short years ago, laying it out explicitly in back-to-back videos prepared by his congressional campaign:
For those unable to watch the video, the earnest Ryan says, among other things:
“What’s unique about what’s happening today in government and in the world and America is that it’s as if we are living in an Ayn Rand novel right now. … I think Ayn Rand did more than anybody to build a moral case for capitalism, the morality of individualism, and this to me is what matters most.”
Again, Ryan’s voluntary, unprovoked and clearly heartfelt profession of Randian philosophy came in 2009, just three years ago, and it is just one in a long string of public expressions by Ryan of his loyalty to and faith in Rand’s philosophy.
More recently, of course, Ryan has attempted to pretend that none of that has occurred, proclaiming it “urban legend” that he had been influenced by Rand and claiming to “reject her philosophy.” However, if that’s true, this sudden change of heart has not been accompanied by any matching change in Ryan’s political outlook. It remains today what it was when he was still willing to publicly celebrate Rand’s claim to moral authority.
Why is this relevant? Well, Randian philosophy — “objectivism” they call it — is to my mind soft-headed, romantic claptrap that attempts vainly to masquerade as hard-headed, pragmatic economic theory. Its appeal is emotional, not intellectual. And while for individual persons, particularly young people, Rand’s work may be effective as a “self-help philosophy” and motivational tool, as the basis of a society or economic system it would be profoundly impractical and even cruel.
That shouldn’t be a surprise, of course, given that Rand rejected the existence of society in the first place. In fact, she treated the very notion of social responsibility as a conspiracy by which the weak parasites of the world attempt to seize the products of the strong and virile creators. In the video above, Ryan clearly buys into that world view, arguing that Randian individualism represents “the moral foundation of America.”
On that count, I personally find the witness of Thomas Jefferson more convincing, given that he helped to lay the foundation in question. Even back in Jefferson’s day, “self-interest, or rather self-love, or egoism” was being proposed by some as the basis of morality, but the drafter of the Declaration of Independence was having none of it.
Self-love, Jefferson warned, “is no part of morality. Indeed it is exactly its counterpart. It is the sole antagonist of virtue, leading us constantly by our propensities to self-gratification in violation of our moral duties to others…. Take from man his selfish propensities, and he can have nothing to seduce him from the practice of virtue.”
Ryan’s background also plays into the problem. Like his running mate, he is a child born into relative wealth and privilege. That does not make either Ryan or Mitt Romney evil, wrong, foolish or misguided. To the contrary, their shared background says nothing at all about their personal character or leadership abilities.
It must, however, affect their perspective, just as being born into poverty or struggle affects the perspective of those who experience the world from that end of things.
Knowing that you have been born into that rarified world, with all the advantage that it confers, ought to make you a little humble about lecturing others about lifting themselves up by their bootstraps. It ought to make you a little less arrogant about your own success, and a little more sympathetic toward those to whom raw luck has been a little less kind. It should make you acknowledge, to yourself if no one else, that you stand where you stand in part because of factors over which you have had no control, and to understand that others stand where they stand in part because of factors over which they too have had no control.
However, in Ryan’s political rhetoric and policy pronouncements there is little evidence of the leavening power of humility. The philosophy of Rand has served to inoculate him and others against such dark thoughts, whispering in their ears the reassurance that that their success is testament only to their own merit, and freeing them of any obligation to assist others.
I don’t accept that argument. It is antithetical to human nature and to thousands of years of human history in which the individual has had responsibilities to the group, and the group has had responsibilities to the individual. The genius of the American system in particular has been its ability to create a workable, ethical balance between those competing responsibilities.
The “morality” that Ryan proposes would toss that balance aside, creating a system the likes of which has never been seen, and which would meet no definition of the word “moral” that I, or Jefferson, would accept.
– Jay Bookman
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1,118 comments Add your comment
getalife
August 16th, 2012
12:40 am
Kam,
Don’t out me or…………
getalife
August 16th, 2012
12:41 am
There are two of them Tax.
ken
August 16th, 2012
12:50 am
Who is John Gault ?
ken
August 16th, 2012
1:03 am
Jay, why are you worried about Ann Rand but not worried about Rev Wright ????????????
Brian
August 16th, 2012
1:11 am
I have a couple questions for all of you: What is morality? And why does man even need morality?
Notice I mean morality qua morality, not any specific type of morality, but morality as such.
Z
August 16th, 2012
2:49 am
A Republican God in their eyes, President Reagan, was greatly dislike by Ayn Rand.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
5:28 am
Z – are you kidding – if Reagan was alive today, the Tea Partiers would HATE him! he worked with the Dems, he increased debt, increased the size of government, granted amnesty to illegal immigrants … hell, he WAS one of the “Hollywood Elites” …
yeah, they love to romanticize who he was, but they would have HATED what he did.
Mary Elizabeth
August 16th, 2012
5:37 am
One of the points of my sharing the story of my great, great uncle, in which he was quoted as having said, “Why should I want to live if everyone else is starving?” was to demonstrate that the current American value, and consciousness, of inordinate self-interest has not always been dominant within the American psyche. It has emerged as dominant only within the past 45 years. There is a reason for this. This shift in values, toward more selfishness, has been created by deliberate design.
My great, great uncle was born in the 1800s. His words, above, were stated in WWI. After a long and benevolent life, he died in 1952. (His son, my cousin, moved to Chicago from the South, and became an editor for a major national book publishing company.) I remember the communal values of men and women such as my father and mother who, during WWII and the years immediately thereafter, desired to serve others with their lives, as well as to serve the needs of their immediate families. I remember the altruism of young Civil Rights workers during the 1960s who wished to serve others with their lives. The Peace Corps was established during the 1960s, within the Kennedy administration, and its mission was given vitality through the commitment to its purposes by young and old, alike. The Peace Corps was another example of American altruism which was dominant in the American psyche through the 1960s.
It has only been since the mid-1970s – when ALEC was formed, and those ultraconservatives, such as the Koch Brothers among others, who financially contributed to that organization and who wanted to shift this nation’s consciousness, stealthily, toward a more Libertarian consciousness – has the government been “pitched” as “the enemy” of its citizens, and virtue has been equated with inordinate self-interest.
In my opinion, this turn has created an American citizen, and an American consciousness, that are lacking in wisdom and which perpetuate an adolescent psychology in its citizens, well into their old age. Whatever else George W. Bush possessed as president, one would be hard pressed to consider him, or his administration’s choices for the most part, wise. It is through seeing a commonality with all people that we grow psychologically into full adulthood, and that we reach some degree of wisdom, both as individuals and as a nation.
This nation faces a monumental choice in November in terms of its future character. And, as Shakespeare penned more eloquently than I, character will determine destiny, both for individuals and for our nation. (”It is not in the stars to hold our destiny but in ourselves.”) Moral as Romney and Ryan may be within their own families, one can literally look into their eyes and see limitations of vision. Theirs is a look that does not include all men and women. Whatever they may say, in my opinion, they have forfeited some degree of understanding of the common humanity among all people, through embracing the vision of Ayn Rand’s more limited, capitalistic, self-oriented worldview. (I am supportive of capitalism as an economic engine, but I believe capitalism should exist within a higher humane consciousness of the citizens’ understanding and will.)
Government is not the enemy of the people. Government, chosen by the people, best operates as the servant of the people. Thomas Jefferson said it best in the Declaration of Independence:
“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”
stands for decibels
August 16th, 2012
6:03 am
To make a long story short, he used to brag about his political position (which he was not re-elected to) in a certain county. Others — not me — were able to put 2 and 2 together a ascertain his true identity.
I missed that episode of As the Wingfield Turns, but thanks for the recap, Sooth. Hilarious stuff.
stands for decibels
August 16th, 2012
6:05 am
In my opinion, this turn has created an American citizen, and an American consciousness, that are lacking in wisdom and which perpetuate an adolescent psychology in its citizens, well into their old age.
Yep.
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
August 16th, 2012
6:20 am
Good morning all y’all…a little light enterainment for this morning…
http://icanhas.cheezburger.com/news?OnoBetaOptInRedirect=true
Thomas Heyward Jr.
August 16th, 2012
6:27 am
@5:37
Thou shall not steal nor murder……….even by majority vote.
Jimbo
August 16th, 2012
6:28 am
My only question is, did Ryan adopt his philosophy to justify a career catering to wealthy campaign contributors or did he rise up because rich campaign contributors recognized that his philosophy served their purposes. One thing’s for sure, he is where he is because he serves the monied class’s interests. Fiscal conservative my ass.
nelson
August 16th, 2012
6:32 am
There are 934 comments on here so go right to mine and get the real scoop. The White House Campaign bus has just left the White House with “home brew” on it. It has gone too far, I know the President wants to make sure he reaches the masses of people the poor, rich, immigrants and everyone. Now he is pandering to homebrewers, that has to cover everybody. Actually, there could be a voter out there that he may have missed, the last surviving participant in the Hatfield and McCoy feud. Now if he[Hatfield] finds out that there is home brew on board, The President will have his vote.
Thomas Heyward Jr.
August 16th, 2012
6:42 am
Thou shalt not covet another man’s wealth either.
SBinf
August 16th, 2012
6:45 am
Rand and Ryan both have something in common, they had no problem suckling off the government teat when it suits their needs. For Ryan, he got his as benefits after his father’s death. Rand, took public benefits at the end of her life.
Such credibility they have….NOT
Uncle Billy
August 16th, 2012
6:50 am
He sounds like “The Yellow Rose of Texas” (John Bell Hood) who caught hell in Tennessee. His army ceased to exist after the Battle of Nashville.
Jack
August 16th, 2012
7:18 am
Too many groups are depending on other individuals to pay their way. Bookman, can you spare a dime?
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
7:28 am
My faith In humanity Is somewhat restored. I went looking for some examples of right-wing over-reaction to news that Obama is, in fact, home-brewing in the White House and…
didn’t find any. In fact, every news item I scanned seemed to treat this like the bit of foamy fluff that it is.
[golf clap]
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
7:30 am
Too many groups are depending on other individuals to pay their way.
ok, I’ll bite. What is the precise percentage of “parasites” to “producers” that you’ll find tolerable? (and you can define these two rather loathsome terms any way you like.)
And for extra credit, what’s the humane manner you’d choose to get to that figure?
dbm
August 16th, 2012
7:39 am
The appeal of Ayn Rand’s ideas is intellectual, not emotional.
The appeal of Ayn Rand’s novels is both intellectual and emotional. They wouldn’t be very good novels if that weren’t true.
No doubt there are some people who react positively to Ayn Rand for non-intellectual reasons. She was very much aware that some people could react positively to her work for the wrong reasons. She once said she “learned to expect nothing from reviewers because of the so-called ‘favorable’ reviews, not the illiterate smears.”
dbm
August 16th, 2012
7:41 am
Comparing Ayn Rand to L. Ron Hubbard or Jacqueline Susann makes about as much sense as comparing Jay to Tammy Faye Bakker. Comparing Ayn Rand to Hitler makes about as much sense as comparing Jay to Eileen Wuornos.
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
7:42 am
Oh dear. mild-mannered Dana Milbank has gone shrill.
Forgive me, but I’m not prepared to join this walk down Great Umbrage Street just yet. Yes, it’s ugly out there. But is this worse than four years ago, when Obama was accused by the GOP vice presidential nominee of “palling around with terrorists”? Or eight years ago, when Democratic nominee John Kerry was accused of falsifying his Vietnam War record?
What’s different this time is that the Democrats are employing the same harsh tactics that have been used against them for so long, with so much success. They have ceased their traditional response of assuming the fetal position when attacked, and Obama’s campaign is giving as good as it gets — and then some.
[...]
Stephanie Cutter, Obama’s deputy campaign manager, said the campaign had “no problem” with Biden’s chains claim and said Obama “probably agrees with Joe Biden’s sentiments.” She derided the Romney side’s “faux outrage” and called the Republicans “hypocritical.”
Eight years ago, Cutter was a staffer on the Kerry campaign when the candidate was undone by Swift Boat Veterans for Truth attacks on his war record. Cutter, like other Democrats, learned a hard truth back then: Umbrage doesn’t win elections. Ruthlessness does.
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
7:45 am
And about the need for ruthlessness, I’ll quote the usually excellent John Cole, who tipped me off to Dana’s piece:
Bending over and being beaten up by bullies has done nothing. At long last, Democrats are growing a spine and fighting back.
Yes, it’s giving the “reasonable Republicans” who provide rhetorical cover for the lunatic Christianist and Randian fanatics fits, but hey- maybe it’s time to own what your party has become?
Paul
August 16th, 2012
7:47 am
Jack 7:18
“Too many groups are depending on other individuals to pay their way. ”
No kidding. Especially these people. They’re people, remember? Expecting the rest of us to pay their way.
“Study: Companies paid more to CEOs than in US tax”
“Twenty-six big U.S. companies paid their CEOs more last year than they paid the federal government in tax, according to a study released Thursday by a liberal-leaning think tank.
The study, by the Institute for Policy Studies, said the companies, including AT&T, Boeing and Citigroup, paid their CEOs an average of $20.4 million last year while paying little or no federal tax on ample profits, according to regulatory filings.
On average, the 26 companies generated net income of more than $1 billion in the U.S., the study said.”
http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/08/16/4184754/study-companies-paid-more-to-ceos.html#storylink=misearch
Paul
August 16th, 2012
7:48 am
Hey Joseph!! Hey Steve ATL!!! Wake UP!!!! Look at that highlighted blue line of text in my previous post.
It’s a……….. SOURCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
7:51 am
“The more we release, the more we get attacked.”
“We’ve done what’s legally required, and so there’s going to be no more tax releases.”
http://www.5min.com/Video/Ann-Romney-No-More-Returns-Will-Be-Released-517443445
Please, Mitt–keep running your Aspiring First Lady out there in front of the TV cameras to do her Leona Helmsley impersonation. It’s a winner.
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
August 16th, 2012
7:53 am
Good morning Paul
In a rather good mood, are we?
Paul
August 16th, 2012
7:56 am
Normal
Yeah. I’ve debated a bit, trying to harmonize my posts with how I think people ought to conduct themselves, but I figure a little preemptive ’show me your basis’ posting done in a ‘dig, dig, wink, wink’ tone is okay.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
7:57 am
ooooooooo … I love it when Paul is full of P&V
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
7:57 am
Paul, you are covetous and in violation of those laws that some (almost certainly fictional) guy foisted upon a desert kingdom several thousand years ago.
Willis
August 16th, 2012
7:57 am
We need Ryan for what? To give us morality lessons? We need Romney for what? They are not leaders, they are destroyers.
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
7:58 am
Paul always has points and views, UnU.
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
August 16th, 2012
7:59 am
Paul,
Well, I’ve always thought you were the role model for decorum here, but I guess a little dig is deserved now and again…Like my generation often quoted in the ’60s…”If it feels good, do it.”
Just keep on being our inspiration… ;
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
7:59 am
We need Ryan for what?
The knackerer’s could whip up a dandy batch of glue, one imagines.
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
8:00 am
WWPP?
Paul
August 16th, 2012
8:01 am
stands
I’m just following the five Mel Brooks dropped.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TAtRCJIqnk#t=00m53s
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
8:02 am
who would paul poke?
Paul
August 16th, 2012
8:03 am
Morning, USinUK!
Stands gotcha’ there, eh? In all fairness, you weren’t here for a certain blogger equating questions with views and points…. and answers…. and whatever else crossed the stream of consciousness.
Ol' Timer
August 16th, 2012
8:04 am
Great piece, Bookman!
Reminds me of a quote from John Kenneth Galbriath: “The modern conservative is engaged in one of man’s oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness.”
Selah.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
8:05 am
hiya Pauly!! how’s Mrs. Paul?
Paul
August 16th, 2012
8:05 am
Normal
That’s a fine goal. Seriously, so many people begin each day as if they have no history, nothing to learn from what went before. It’s just, as I said, a good-natured dig (tone isn’t always evident in blog posts, I know) to say ‘hey guys, starting today, post what you will, but at least give us the source of your information or the basis for your conclusion, okay, please?.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
8:05 am
Ol’ Timer – 8:04 – word.
Peter
August 16th, 2012
8:08 am
Romney will cut the UN-employment . HA HA H SURE….. Just look at the results we have from the GOP running the state.
No he won’t . he will cut taxes for the rich, and the piss on you economics will start again !
Paul
August 16th, 2012
8:08 am
USinUK
Almost over the cough. Thought it was gone and just as I thought that, BAM!, it went on and on. But at least I got her to the doctor on our trip before, as he put it, pneumonia developed. Tends to be a downer on a holiday.
From those FB pics you are having a right fine time of it, aren’t you? Looks like you work at an okay place!
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
8:10 am
I’m just following the five Mel Brooks dropped.
Gimme that REALLY old-time religion…
who would paul poke?
I’d say “That’s down to Mrs. Paul innit?” but that would be wrong.
Mick
August 16th, 2012
8:10 am
I think this is worth a repost – these are the offspring that repubs want to protect from any tax increases – go figure…
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/rich-kids-instagram-overserved-oversharing-141657288.html
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
8:11 am
hey … did you guys know that August is National Peach Month???
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
8:11 am
Romney will cut the UN-employment . HA HA H SURE…
If his Gubernatorial record is any indication, he’ll do it by making vast numbers of Americans self-deport themselves to more hospitable countries.
Doggone/GA
August 16th, 2012
8:12 am
“Reminds me of a quote from John Kenneth Galbriath”
One of my favorites!
godless heathen
August 16th, 2012
8:14 am
Doug Wilder, the only Democrat that gets it?
“Without question they were appeals to race,” Wilder told CNN. “And if you don’t argue with that, then you understand that, then the next question is why? Why do you feel you need to do that? But the more important thing that I got out of this was Biden separated himself from what he accused the people of doing. As a matter of fact what he said is, they are going to do something to y’all, not to me, not us. So he was still involved with that separate America. And I’m sick and tired of being considered something other than an American.”
ProfFish
August 16th, 2012
8:14 am
I find it odd that in a morality tale, you would quote a rich white man who raped and impregnated his slaves. No self interest there, I’m sure. Sometimes giving to those with nothing requires a little extra effort.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
8:14 am
Paul – I do work in an okay place, thank yew!
Man, I’m sorry about the cough – they really do take it out of you. Is she on amped-up antibiotics? tell her I said hiya!! and that some super spicy chicken will make her feel better (hot chillies make everything better) … you live in the best place for THAT
Paul
August 16th, 2012
8:19 am
USinUK
She’s off the antibiotics but refuses to return to the doctor. Thankfully, she loves hot and spicy food. That’s one great carry-over from her major surgery a few years’ back. As far as where we live… no need to eat the chilis for the heat. Just go outside and breath with your mouth open!
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
8:19 am
And I’m sick and tired of being considered something other than an American.”
I think we need to find Dougie a nice, loving shelter for abused Blue Dogs.
JKL2
August 16th, 2012
8:20 am
getalife- They should do another audit
Plenty of fraud, waste, and abuse to go around.
Why audit? Democrats care nothing about reducing spending. Get those evil rich ddudes to atart paying their “fair share”. That’s where it’s at.
Butch Cassidy (I)
August 16th, 2012
8:21 am
Just saw that Georgias UE rate went up again. How long until until the party faithful start blaming Obama?
RB from Gwinnett
August 16th, 2012
8:21 am
The DNC must be proud Jay. Any chance for a bonus for posting videos?
To bad Ryan hasnt learned the art of sitting in a racists church for 20 years and being raised by a Muslim in a US hating society without being influenced by them.
Thulsa Doom
August 16th, 2012
8:24 am
gonna put ya’ll back in chains…”
This has been another episode of “KOOKS GONE CRAZY” brought to you by Doomy. Get your complete dvd collection of krazy kook comments for only $19.99.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
8:24 am
“being raised by a Muslim in a US hating society ”
yay!!!
thanks for the morning giggle RG
Doggone/GA
August 16th, 2012
8:26 am
“to bad Ryan hasnt learned the art of sitting in a racists church for 20 years and being raised by a Muslim in a US hating society without being influenced by them”
Too bad you haven’t learned that lying is a sin
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
8:27 am
To bad Ryan hasnt learned the art of sitting in a racists church for 20 years and being raised by a Muslim in a US hating society without being influenced by them.
hee hee. I’d ask our Arby to define some of those terms just to watch him sputter and cry, but y’know–that sentence stands alone as an almost perfect example of online crankiness.
bravo!
Peter
August 16th, 2012
8:28 am
Butch Cassidy (I) ………What you really mean is the great GOP lie is ………they know how to create jobs….
jasper
August 16th, 2012
8:29 am
So Obama, Hillary and Charitable Joe meet today. Do you think Joe will just bow out or will they have to invent a calamity. He’s been a great life insurance policy for Barack so far, “don’t kill me or you’ll get him for president.” Given Joe’s onsetting dimentia, they could say he just went for a walk and never came back. And do you think Hillary will really rejuvenate the campaign, long term I mean. What has she ever done for the economy?
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
8:31 am
Charitable Joe
oh, jasper?
Just how is it that you actually *know* that Joe is, or isn’t, “Charitable”?
Is it because his taxes are a matter of public record?
Is that information useful to you?
Just wondering.
godless heathen
August 16th, 2012
8:32 am
I think we need to find Dougie a nice, loving shelter for abused Blue Dogs
Not “articulate, bright, and clean” enough?
Thulsa Doom
August 16th, 2012
8:34 am
What you really mean is the great GOP lie is ………they know how to create jobs….
Peter,
Not quite. Saw a debate on this several weeks ago on C-Span I think it was. The last election go around in the states 23 governships changed hands- 15 went R and 8 went D. So how has unemployment gone in those states? In the 8 states taken over by Ds unemployment had dropped by about .9%. In the 23 R taken over by R governors the unemployment rate had dropped by about 1.30%. Nearly a 50% better result in the states taken over by Rs since the last election go around. Interesting and very telling stat.
JKL2
August 16th, 2012
8:35 am
Mary Elizabeth- Government, chosen by the people, best operates as the servant of the people.
It’s a shame obama and his federal cohorts have long forgotten that. If you don’t agree with him. it must mean you didn’t receive his message.
Hard to be a servant when you don’t listen to anyone.
bob
August 16th, 2012
8:36 am
Atlas Shrugged VS the Communist Manifesto, I’ll take Atlas Shrugged.
RB from Gwinnett
August 16th, 2012
8:37 am
How is it an illegal can get credit for serving in our military but my company gets fined for hiring them?
bob
August 16th, 2012
8:39 am
Peter, compare Bush’s unemployment record to Obama’s. Prior to pelosi taking over, Bush had 6 years under 6% so someone was creating more jobs then than now.
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
8:39 am
‘Atlas Shrugged VS the Communist Manifesto”
you guys are a laugh effing RIOT
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
August 16th, 2012
8:39 am
RB,
You really are pathetic, son…
USinUK - pro-gay-marriage thug and former Girl Scout
August 16th, 2012
8:40 am
“How is it an illegal can get credit for serving in our military but my company gets fined for hiring them?”
because one contributes to the welfare and security of the company and the other contributes to your pocket.
GT
August 16th, 2012
8:40 am
Morality is the DNA of civilization.
It is the lack of it and then the denial and then the compromised press that finds the windfall of profit being on the side of immorality that is the recipe of the cake we eat now. It may have started in the back alleys but now it is invited to the table where it gets fatter and fatter using up all the space around the table. It got in our churches disguised as right wing religion, it got into our schools disguise at budget cutting, it got on our airways because like porn it sold. It got into Wall Street because it served the purpose of the politicians that needed the appearance of prosperity to be elected. Instead of paying off the cops we get rid of them, small government, compromised religion to justify our hates and fears, so they can’t interfere, compromise the press by making it a money makers instead of an institution of truth, compromise government with lobbies and superpacs. The mess we have now is a direct result of a country that has lost it way, then infecting a world that has all the human weaknesses we have. Nature would and will cure it, we can’t bail out the banks and Wall Street forever. You will find the truth has and will become a premium product searched for more in an Internet world than ever in a black and white world. All the lies to ourselves, the self serving skims, the power grabs, guns, money, will not hold back the truth, even the cause of our troubles will be force upon us with increasing pressure as we make our excuses and fool ourselves. .
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
August 16th, 2012
8:41 am
Little “b” bob need to take his big “B” Blinders off…
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
8:41 am
Not “articulate, bright, and clean” enough?
No, I just don’t want Doug to, as Bruce might put it, “end up like a dog that’s been beat too much, ’til he spends half his life just coverin’ up.”
LeeH1
August 16th, 2012
8:42 am
William Buckley said that Ayn Rand was the intellectual’s pornographer. After she died, Gary Jennings (Aztec, Raptor) took that crown. Now that he’s died, I don’t know who is the intellectual’s pornographer today.
Rand was neither a Nazi nor a Communist, but like both those societies, she believed in the “Strong Man” theory. This is the idea that a strong man (John Galt) will have all the answers and will lead others into truth, destroying all other opposition until final victory (the Triumph of Will) is fulfilled. Sorta like the people who followed Hitler and Stalin. That strong man must have devoted followers who will bow down and submit to the Strong Man’s rule. Silly and girlish hero worship in many ways, romantically pornographic in other bodice-ripping ways.
Thulsa Doom
August 16th, 2012
8:43 am
Just the facts please. Red right to work states outperforming blue states since the 2010 elections and newly red states outperforming. Just the facts ma’am.
http://pjmedia.com/blog/gop-states-saved-economy-in-2011/
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
8:43 am
Atlas Shrugged VS the Communist Manifesto, I’ll take Atlas Shrugged.
hmm. what’re we talking about, 1500 pages vs. 150 pages of mostly irritating propaganda? I’ll go with Karl, it’ll be over a lot sooner.
RB from Gwinnett
August 16th, 2012
8:43 am
Truth hurts doesn’t it Normal?
TaxPayer
August 16th, 2012
8:44 am
Atlas Shrugged VS the Communist Manifesto, I’ll take Atlas Shrugged.
I hear you can enjoy both by moving to Communist China. Why limit yourself.
Granny Godzilla - Union Thugette
August 16th, 2012
8:45 am
Good Morning Bookmaniacs!
A little partisan political parody brought to you by some of the best of Broadway.
Warning to the right, the music is WONDERFUL but the lyrics will make your heads explode en masse.
House lights are dimming…..
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/15/one-term-more-les-miserables-obama-parody_n_1783295.html
kayaker 71
August 16th, 2012
8:45 am
Unemployment up to 9.3% in Georgia. But we’ll just ignore that. There’s more important stories to discuss, like Hairless Joe’s gaffs and Ryan’s obsession with Ayn Rand. Face the issues, liberals. We are broke. Unemployment still over 8% for 42 straight months and growth at a magnificent 1.5%. Something is not working but dodging and ignoring the important issues is the only thing you have. Romney’s dog on top of the car, Sandra Flucks birth control pills and Bozo’s likability. That ought to get us out of this mess.
RB from Gwinnett
August 16th, 2012
8:46 am
USinUk. I don’t suppose you’d care to share any provisions in employment law for that would you?
Normal Free...Pro Human Rights Thug...And liking it!
August 16th, 2012
8:47 am
RB from Gwinnett
August 16th, 2012
8:43 am
What? That you’re pathetic? It hurts me that you don’t see it, is all…
JKL2
August 16th, 2012
8:47 am
stands- ok, I’ll bite. What is the precise percentage of “parasites” to “producers” that you’ll find tolerable? (and you can define these two rather loathsome terms any way you like.)
Zero. Everybody pays because everybody plays.
TaxPayer
August 16th, 2012
8:49 am
Unemployment up to 9.3% in Georgia. But we’ll just ignore that.
You shouldn’t let your fellow Republican politicians off the hook so easy given that the national average is only 8.3%.
Doggone/GA
August 16th, 2012
8:49 am
” But we’ll just ignore that. There’s more important stories to discuss”
blogspot.com is ready when you are
Jim Carroll Internet Free Press
August 16th, 2012
8:49 am
JESUS WAS A PROGRESSIVE LIBERAL
Posted on August 15, 2012 by jcarroll
If Jesus were here today, he would put the Republicans 0n the same list with the Pharisees and Sadducees. Jesus would be for Social Security, he would be for Medicare, he would be for Obama Care, he would be for unemployment benefits, he would be for increasing minimum wages, he would be for food stamps, and he would be for the Five-Finger-Agenda-which you can read at the Internet Free Press.
Why Christians want to be republicans is beyond my range of my knowledge. Jesus said, “he had come that we might have life and have it more abundantly”. Republicans stand in the door to prevent it with flaming swords.
Mitt Romney chances of getting into Heaven are as good as a camel going through the eye of a needle. If he goes to Hell, he doesn’t have to worry– some good Morman will get baptize for him; and out of Hell he will come like Hitler did.
JKL2
August 16th, 2012
8:50 am
stands- Obama’s campaign is giving as good as it gets — and then some.
Anything to avoid talking about the issues…
TaxPayer
August 16th, 2012
8:51 am
Needles, in the sun-baked Mojave Desert, attained a dubious distinction you won’t find on the Chamber of Commerce website or in any brochures. The town on Monday set a world record for hottest rainfall: a remarkable 115 degrees Fahrenheit.
Toasty.
kayaker 71
August 16th, 2012
8:51 am
Taxpayer, 8:49,
“My fellow Republicans” are just as complicit in this as “your concerned Democrats”. But Bozo’s economic policies have done us no favors.
Thomas
August 16th, 2012
8:55 am
This blog/editorial was in the NY Times earlier in the day yesterday.
Good job Jay
Did the Braves win last Sunday?
By the way- Romney/Ryan well they are just awful people and should be castrated.
Local Jay local
Paul
August 16th, 2012
8:56 am
Granny Godzilla
Loved the music, loved the voices.
I was a bit distracted, though, but the bass drum beating in the background.
Then I realized it was all the heads exploding in the blogosphere – …..
kayaker 71
August 16th, 2012
8:57 am
Thomas, 8:55,
They should be WHAT?
stands for decibels (SfBA)
August 16th, 2012
8:59 am
We are broke.
A business that could sell bonds that pay the closest thing to nothing and still be called “interest”–would you call that business “broke,” or “thriving,” vis a vis the rest of the marketplace, 71?
Paul
August 16th, 2012
8:59 am
Jim Carroll
Again, I’m completely baffled by how someone can make a relatively well-reasoned and supported argument – then completely blow it in the last paragraph by demonstrating complete ignorance of the subject matter.
JKL2
August 16th, 2012
9:00 am
godless- As a matter of fact what he said is, they are going to do something to y’all, not to me, not us
Well said. Democrats like to say how they are so tolerant but then force you into micro groups. Hard to be a melting pot when they insist on telling you how different you are.
gm
August 16th, 2012
9:00 am
Amazing how the left bigots attack Biden, did these retards look at their primary? Rick used the word chains and slavery during the campign, no morales Newt called the President of the United Food stamps, racist birthers running around and tax dodger Mitt never said a word.