Was Miss Rand Persuading Producers to "Strike"?

[theestevearnold]

No. The striking aspect of Atlas Shrugged was to show how valuable the minds' of the producers are. She showed I can protest immoral taxation and starve government by earning just below the amount where I would owe income taxes.

[Repairman]

I believe entrepreneurs will continue to struggle for their niche in the market; larger industrialists will dominate. All those truly committed to their success will face growing difficulties, but some will rise to the challenge in spite of difficulties. I realize that these are banal statements, but these are basically the sentiments I expressed to one young man interested in Atlas Shrugged, and the possibilities of a "Strike" of this sort. In addition, I believe there are multitudes of ambitious, creative, and able men and women who will abandon their dreams for either the allure of secure employment, or the pressure of barriers created through government agencies. This is the sort of strike that Rand alluded to at one point in Galt's Speech. John Galt faced the possibility of having his greatest achievement made property of a company that would misuse the profits, and deny his creative contribution. Many great minds leave their employers to go into their own independent operations. These are the men and women to whom we all own our thanks, and we can only hope they never go on strike.

[theestevearnold]

I believe entrepreneurs will continue to struggle for their niche in the market; larger industrialists will dominate. All those truly committed to their success will face growing difficulties, but some will rise to the challenge in spite of difficulties. I realize that these are banal statements, but these are basically the sentiments I expressed to one young man interested in Atlas Shrugged, and the possibilities of a "Strike" of this sort. In addition, I believe there are multitudes of ambitious, creative, and able men and women who will abandon their dreams for either the allure of secure employment, or the pressure of barriers created through government agencies. This is the sort of strike that Rand alluded to at one point in Galt's Speech. John Galt faced the possibility of having his greatest achievement made property of a company that would misuse the profits, and deny his creative contribution. Many great minds leave their employers to go into their own independent operations. These are the men and women to whom we all own our thanks, and we can only hope they never go on strike.

That was beautiful, man. It motivated me to succeed in this world, like how Dagny must've felt when she flew out the Gulch to return to the fight.  

[Eiuol]

No. The striking aspect of Atlas Shrugged was to show how valuable the minds' of the producers are. She showed I can protest immoral taxation and starve government by earning just below the amount where I would owe income taxes.

Um, how did she ever advocate earning less than a taxable income? The whole context of the story is an a-typical situation that is so very bad, extreme measures are required.

[theestevearnold]

. She didn't. I misinterpreted some of Galt's speech. The closest example was different...how Galt and Hugh Akston showed that in a mind strike situation I could earn my living by manual labor so the ungrateful parasites wouldn't benefit from my mind. (My mind seems to have little value lately, on this site.) I recognize it was a mind strike, and not an income tax strike. I was rationalizing the embarrassing fact that I didn't earn enough this year to owe income taxes.

[whYNOT]

. She didn't. I misinterpreted some of Galt's speech. The closest example was different...how Galt and Hugh Akston showed that in a mind strike situation I could earn my living by manual labor so the ungrateful parasites wouldn't benefit from my mind. (My mind seems to have little value lately, on this site.) I recognize it was a mind strike, and not an income tax strike. I was rationalizing the embarrassing fact that I didn't earn enough this year to owe income taxes.

Yes, and you have established something critical, that a "mind strike" without purpose is self-sacrificial. It is giving up the very high value of advancing a career for something that has zero hope of success (unless you can unite every producer in the country to follow suit.)

It is essentially altruistic, I'd think.

Don't be so hard on yourself, btw. Honest errors come with the territory.

Edited December 26, 2013 by whYNOT

[Leonid]

Ayn Rand clearly indicated that she is not in favor of strike in the real life as long as country is not a totalitarian dictatorship. She was an advocate of reason and maintained that as long as people can freely exchange ideas there is a chance to change a dominant philosophy and people's mind set.

Edited December 26, 2013 by Leonid

[volco]

Ayn Rand clearly indicated that she is not in favor of strike in the real life as long as country is not a totalitarian dictatorship. She was an advocate of reason and maintained that as long as people can freely exchange ideas there is a chance to change a dominant philosophy and people's mind set.

True, she answered this during the Mike Wallace interview and in one of her Capitalism TUI, the breaking point is free speech cancelled in the last free country on Earth. If Free Speech is cancelled in another country her recommendation (according to her previous books) was emigration.