Cult of Ayn Rand & the Worship of Fascist Supermen Objectivism and Libertarianism owe a great deal to the writings of Ayn Rand and both are typically associated with belief in expansive degrees of personal liberty...
The Unlikeliest Cult in History "My following is not a cult. I am not a cult figure," Rand once told an interviewer. Barbara Branden, in her biography, The Passion of Ayn Rand, ...
Open Court: The Ayn Rand Cult In this daring debunking of Ayn Rand and her inner circle, Jeff Walker looks at the woman behind The Fountainhead and ...
A Randroid is a follower of Objectivism, a religion devoted to the worship of Ayn Rand, a "philosopher" who taught that selfishness is the highest good, altruism is the ultimate evil, and that the point of life is the individual pursuit of happiness.
Randroids have major hard-ons for big business even though most of them, including Rand herself, have no experience in the business world beyond the cash register at the local Quizno's. According to Objectivism, capitalism is innately fair and anyone who doesn't earn enough money to make a living simply isn't working hard enough.
Oh, stop it. I'm a follower of nothing. I post what makes sense and Ayn Rand made more sense, more often, than most. She had her failings but that doesn't mean everything she said was bunk.
You're tripping - especially if you let a single film clip cause you to go around accusing an anti-cultist of being in a cult.
Ayn Rand fled the Soviet Union, wrote a book about individualism that a lot of people liked, got plenty of compliments, and formed a coterie of admirers. Her admirers found nicer and nicer things to say about her, and she enjoyed it too much to tell them to shut up. She found herself with the power to crush those of whom she disapproved, and she didn't resist the temptation of power.
Ayn Rand and Nathaniel Branden carried on a secret extramarital affair. (With permission from both their spouses, which counts for a lot in my view. If you want to turn that into a "problem", you have to specify that the spouses were unhappy - and then it's still not a matter for outsiders.) When Branden was revealed to have "cheated" on Rand with yet another woman, Rand flew into a fury and excommunicated him. Many Objectivists broke away when news of the affair became public.
Who stayed with Rand, rather than following Branden, or leaving Objectivism altogether? Her strongest supporters. Who departed? The previous voices of moderation. Ever after, Rand's grip over her remaining coterie was absolute, and no questioning was allowed.
The only extraordinary thing about the whole business, is how ordinary it was.
You might think that a belief system which praised "reason" and "rationality" and "individualism" would have gained some kind of special immunity, somehow...?
Fuck. The first insult is that you're talking to me like I don't know this stuff - like you have to "educate" me - even after I told you I was aware of all this. Where do you get off?
Second, is that you spout this nonsense about adultery not being a problem - and stating this other nonsense about "it's still not a matter for outsiders" - before listing all the problems it brought about for outsiders as well as those involved. Are you insane, Mr. Know-It-All?
And finally, I'd like to remind you that all of this - that's occurring on this post - is because I merely put a part of a film that's inspired by Rand's writings on my blog. I didn't say I was an Objectivist, didn't praise her as my god, or anything - I merely agreed with a statement on freedom and the role of freed men. That has caused you to freak the fuck out, accuse me of being a cultist, and then appoint yourself as my teacher on a subject I'm already pretty well versed in.
Dude, do you really want to talk to me about being rational or not? Because, right now, you ain't exactly rationality's greatest representative.
Your kind could care less about the truth - your only goal is to deceive ME. To try and confuse me. how does it feel to try and confuse a black man, Anonymous?
Not sure what skin color has to do with anything, but if that's how you see things then why not go after all those "mean people" who hurt Isaac Hayes' feelings by putting down Scientology?
The first insult is that you're talking to me like I don't know this stuff
It's your blog, if you want to hold up an adulterous cult leader who destroyed people's lives as "one of the world's great thinkers," and attack anyone who points this out as a "dickhead," that's your business.
For what it's worth your double standard shines through loud and clear.
Liberals are always telling black people how to live and think, that's what it has to do with anything.
Jesus, Brandon, now you're a liar using diversionary tactics:
You accused me of of being in her cult, without evidence of anything of the kind - which is totally different than Isaac Hayes who was in Scientology.
And I didn't hold up Rand as anything - I posted a film clip - so you made another leap there.
Dude, stop it. All you're doing is digging yourself deeper. You're wrong. Now be rational and just admit it. That's what rational people do. Then it's no big deal. Then it's just a mistake. You, taking all these diversionary tactics - to avoid merely saying "I was wrong" - are a perfect example of what's wrong with the world. Be an adult and face yourself. You're being childish. You lashed out, in a knee-jerk fashion, for no reason. And another thing:
Liking some of Ayn Rand's ideas (which I do) has nothing to do with approving of her actions (which, if you read this blog, you must know I don't). To make the leap you have, without even asking my opinion, is stupid and rude.
Free Men don't join cults, especially the Ayn Rand cult.
ReplyDeleteThe Sociology of the Ayn Rand Cult by Murray N. Rothbard
If the glaring inner contradictions of the Leninist cults make them intriguing objects of study, still more so is the Ayn Rand cult...
Alert and Alarmed: The Ayn Rand cult
If you wanted to know what all this hullabaloo about Ayn Rand is without devoting your ...
Cult of Ayn Rand & the Worship of Fascist Supermen
Objectivism and Libertarianism owe a great deal to the writings of Ayn Rand and both are typically associated with belief in expansive degrees of personal liberty...
The Unlikeliest Cult in History
"My following is not a cult. I am not a cult figure," Rand once told an interviewer. Barbara Branden, in her biography, The Passion of Ayn Rand, ...
Open Court: The Ayn Rand Cult
In this daring debunking of Ayn Rand and her inner circle, Jeff Walker looks at the woman behind The Fountainhead and ...
A Randroid is a follower of Objectivism, a religion devoted to the worship of Ayn Rand, a "philosopher" who taught that selfishness is the highest good, altruism is the ultimate evil, and that the point of life is the individual pursuit of happiness.
ReplyDeleteRandroids have major hard-ons for big business even though most of them, including Rand herself, have no experience in the business world beyond the cash register at the local Quizno's. According to Objectivism, capitalism is innately fair and anyone who doesn't earn enough money to make a living simply isn't working hard enough.
Oh, stop it. I'm a follower of nothing. I post what makes sense and Ayn Rand made more sense, more often, than most. She had her failings but that doesn't mean everything she said was bunk.
ReplyDeleteYou're tripping - especially if you let a single film clip cause you to go around accusing an anti-cultist of being in a cult.
Get a grip.
Ayn Rand fled the Soviet Union, wrote a book about individualism that a lot of people liked, got plenty of compliments, and formed a coterie of admirers. Her admirers found nicer and nicer things to say about her, and she enjoyed it too much to tell them to shut up. She found herself with the power to crush those of whom she disapproved, and she didn't resist the temptation of power.
ReplyDeleteAyn Rand and Nathaniel Branden carried on a secret extramarital affair. (With permission from both their spouses, which counts for a lot in my view. If you want to turn that into a "problem", you have to specify that the spouses were unhappy - and then it's still not a matter for outsiders.) When Branden was revealed to have "cheated" on Rand with yet another woman, Rand flew into a fury and excommunicated him. Many Objectivists broke away when news of the affair became public.
Who stayed with Rand, rather than following Branden, or leaving Objectivism altogether? Her strongest supporters. Who departed? The previous voices of moderation. Ever after, Rand's grip over her remaining coterie was absolute, and no questioning was allowed.
The only extraordinary thing about the whole business, is how ordinary it was.
You might think that a belief system which praised "reason" and "rationality" and "individualism" would have gained some kind of special immunity, somehow...?
Well, it didn't.
Fuck. The first insult is that you're talking to me like I don't know this stuff - like you have to "educate" me - even after I told you I was aware of all this. Where do you get off?
ReplyDeleteSecond, is that you spout this nonsense about adultery not being a problem - and stating this other nonsense about "it's still not a matter for outsiders" - before listing all the problems it brought about for outsiders as well as those involved. Are you insane, Mr. Know-It-All?
And finally, I'd like to remind you that all of this - that's occurring on this post - is because I merely put a part of a film that's inspired by Rand's writings on my blog. I didn't say I was an Objectivist, didn't praise her as my god, or anything - I merely agreed with a statement on freedom and the role of freed men. That has caused you to freak the fuck out, accuse me of being a cultist, and then appoint yourself as my teacher on a subject I'm already pretty well versed in.
Dude, do you really want to talk to me about being rational or not? Because, right now, you ain't exactly rationality's greatest representative.
Your kind could care less about the truth - your only goal is to deceive ME. To try and confuse me. how does it feel to try and confuse a black man, Anonymous?
ReplyDeleteNot sure what skin color has to do with anything, but if that's how you see things then why not go after all those "mean people" who hurt Isaac Hayes' feelings by putting down Scientology?
The first insult is that you're talking to me like I don't know this stuff
It's your blog, if you want to hold up an adulterous cult leader who destroyed people's lives as "one of the world's great thinkers," and attack anyone who points this out as a "dickhead," that's your business.
For what it's worth your double standard shines through loud and clear.
Liberals are always telling black people how to live and think, that's what it has to do with anything.
ReplyDeleteJesus, Brandon, now you're a liar using diversionary tactics:
You accused me of of being in her cult, without evidence of anything of the kind - which is totally different than Isaac Hayes who was in Scientology.
And I didn't hold up Rand as anything - I posted a film clip - so you made another leap there.
Dude, stop it. All you're doing is digging yourself deeper. You're wrong. Now be rational and just admit it. That's what rational people do. Then it's no big deal. Then it's just a mistake. You, taking all these diversionary tactics - to avoid merely saying "I was wrong" - are a perfect example of what's wrong with the world. Be an adult and face yourself. You're being childish. You lashed out, in a knee-jerk fashion, for no reason. And another thing:
Liking some of Ayn Rand's ideas (which I do) has nothing to do with approving of her actions (which, if you read this blog, you must know I don't). To make the leap you have, without even asking my opinion, is stupid and rude.