In protest to President Obama’s policies, conservatives are pulling out of the economy and using Ayn Rand’s 52-year-old novel, Atlas Shrugged, as a guide.
In February, The Economist reported that Amazon.com sales of Atlas Shrugged, the author’s 1957 epic that promotes individual enterprise above all else, during tough economic times, were at an all-time high. The novel, which has surpassed Obama’s The Audacity of Hope, has risen to a rank of 33 from a rank of 547 two years ago.
Atlas’ protagonist, John Galt, is an outcast who retreats from a society that takes from the’ brilliant and creative to give to those less successful and more than willing to receive from the more accomplished.
No wonder Stephen Moore of’ The Wall Street Journal thinks that this should be required reading with the mess our nation is currently in.
Americans are naturally against government becoming more central in their lives; however, being called a socialist is not as insulting as it was in the 1930s when it was associated with soviet-style communism.
‘European-style socialism’ in countries such as Sweden, Norway and Finland seems to be more in line with Obama’s agenda with policies such as universal health care, more funding for education and a greater tax on the wealthy than the middle class or poor.
David Wiegel of the w makes a point that this phenomenon is not another conservative insta-cause sprung up by the awakening of a silent majority, but will instead likely become more of a’ marketing slogan similar to other right-wing rallying points.
Consider last year’s ‘Drill, Baby, Drill’ mania, the Palin merchandise industry and Joe the Plumber.
This economic crisis has been caused by rampant deregulation, and a lack of accountability. Both political parties are responsible, but these policies are primarily those of conservatives, whose chickens came home to roost in last election’s inversion of the Washington power structure.
When getting what they wanted didn’t work, conservatives refused to play with the other children by denying cooperation to fix the financial crisis and name calling with taunts of ‘socialist.’
Instead of an objectivist dystopia, it is far more likely that the invocation of Rand’s work is simply the right ‘crying wolf.’
Marylu Rodriguez is a communication senior and may be reached at [email protected].
