The logic espoused by Ayn Rand in Atlas Shrugged and taught in business schools is followed by a large segment of society, though successfully applied by relatively few. It dictates three steps: (1) that every opportunity for personal gain should be seized; (2) the benefits extracted in a manner hostile to restraint and empowered by ownership until exhausted; and (3) leave a bankrupt corporate shell and poisoned nature behind to move on to the next opportunity: another bioregion to drill, mine, or monocrop. If you dont, someone else will; its money left on the table!<\/p>\n
A thought experiment: assume a world populated by creatures living in hull-side cabins below the waterline of a great ship. They profit, peculiarly, by harvesting seawater (think fossil energy) through holes they drill in the hull. When that worlds population was much smaller and drilled smaller holes, a form of equilibrium existed. Now that their numbers have grown toward eight billion, aided by aggregations called corporations that compete to drill bigger holes, they wallow, slowly sinking in a sea of vast and complex energies.<\/p>\n
Ms. Rands adherents are certain that they must increase their drilling, mining and monocropping ancient bioregions. Its logic.<\/p>\n
Or is it?<\/p>\n
Bill Appel <\/p>\n
Friday Harbor <\/p>\n<\/p>\n
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Continue reading here:<\/p>\n
Life lessons from Ayn Rand |... - Journal of the San Juan Islands<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The logic espoused by Ayn Rand in Atlas Shrugged and taught in business schools is followed by a large segment of society, though successfully applied by relatively few. It dictates three steps: (1) that every opportunity for personal gain should be seized; (2) the benefits extracted in a manner hostile to restraint and empowered by ownership until exhausted; and (3) leave a bankrupt corporate shell and poisoned nature behind to move on to the next opportunity: another bioregion to drill, mine, or monocrop. Continue reading