Destroying themselves and society
John Tamny argues that “companies taking handouts are destroying themselves and society” in Forbes:
In her timeless book Atlas Shrugged, author Ayn Rand chronicled the fictional doings of many great industrialists who were dealing with the greedy hand of government, including Hank Rearden. In an early chapter, Rearden was asked by a relative who his man in Washington was, but he had no answer.
A productive person driven by his own self interest, it never occurred to Rearden to look to Washington for help in growing his business, or for handouts meant to keep it afloat. Success for him resulted from being profitable, and profits were the certain signal that he was giving customers of his massive steel corporation what they wanted.
The story of Rearden takes on greater meaning today as evidenced by the return of Atlas Shrugged to the best-seller lists. Many Americans intuitively understand that our collectivist shift toward bailouts of companies and individuals is exactly what Rand warned us about over 60 years ago. Simplified, if the government allows the unproductive to partake in the gains created by the productive, the productive just might disappear.
So who’s your man in Washington?
