Tea Party rundown
Here’s a growing recap of yesterday’s Tea Party protests that featured “Atlas Shrugged,” John Galt, Ayn Rand, et. al. More will be added as they pop up!
“Tea Bags By the Bay” — Rolling Stone
“And then there were the Ayn Rand acolytes who inveighed against the evils of altruism and the joys of ‘Going Galt.’ So here, at last, were the objectivists.”
“Rightwing, Tea’d Out, Returns to Galt Going” — Village Voice
“Galt is also seen at the tea parties. ‘A couple of the speakers tonight referenced John Galt,’ notes Right in Dallas. ‘The hat close up says GOLD IS MONEY,’ reports another tea party correspondent. “John Galt!’ ”Tea parties.’ ‘Going Galt.’ You’ve probably seen a growing number of references to these in the media,’ says The Atlas Society. ‘The ideas in Atlas Shrugged can be powerful moral weapons to roll back the forces of repression and irrationality.’”
“Boise Tea Baggers rally” — Boise Weekly
“Fischer introduced an objectivist who quoted at length from Atlas Shrugged and argued that the original Boston Tea Party was all about individual rights.
“I later asked Greg ‘Who is John Galt?’ Perkins, a local jazz saxophonist, how opposing taxation without representation relates to individual freedom—weren’t the colonists asking for their own representative government to tax them instead?—and he handed me a flier about Ayn Rand.
“‘Atlas Shrugged could be considered the second Declaration of Independence,’ Perkins said.”
“Inside NYC’s Tea Party Protest” — CBS News
“One young man handed out feathers in homage to the Boston Tea Party; another offered stickers in support of John Galt, the hero of Ayn Rand’s ‘Atlas Shrugged.’”
“Tax Day Tea Party: Who is John Galt? Where is John Galt?” — Politics in Minnesota
“And, perhaps I did single out “Who is John Galt” because Ayn Rand was a crucial part of my college self-education on conservative thought. For those who skipped Rand, John Galt is a fictional character in what many consider to be her most significant novel, Atlas Shrugged. ”Who is John Galt” is an individually expressed yet at the same time collective expression of helplessness and despair at the state of political affairs in the novel.
“[For my money, though, Rand's The Fountainhead is the best Rand novel, and when I find a real Howard Roark, I'll marry him.]“
“Tea Partiers Protest Obama Tax Agenda In Philly’s Love Park” — Philadelphia Bulletin
“Protesters carried placards reading, ‘Declare independence from Socialism!’ ‘No more earmarks!’ and ‘Who is John Galt,’ a reference to a character in Ayn Rand’s pro-capitalism novel Atlas Shrugged.”
“Denver ‘Tea Party’ trades up conservative icons, faux populist ire” — Colorado Independent
“At the second of Denver’s ‘Tea Party’ protests in just six weeks the contrasts couldn’t be more sharp between the crowds, the messages (or lack thereof) and the apotheosis of conservative inspiration — the brainy Ayn Rand is out and the telegenic Ronald Reagan is in. …
“The Feb. 27 stimulus ruckus, that was held on the polar opposite East Steps side of the statehouse, galvanized about 100 people to take to the land, open neighborhood black markets and other small-scale anti-government activities inspired by John Galt, the fictional character of Rand’s novel ‘Atlas Shrugged.’ “
“Bend ‘tea party’ draws a crowd” — Bend Bulletin
“Suelynn Jacobus, 32, from Bend, said she came out Wednesday to express her general displeasure toward incompetence in government. She carried a sign reading ‘Calling all you John Galt’s out there,’ a reference to the hero of the 1957 Ayn Rand novel, ‘Atlas Shrugged,’ a book noted for its libertarian politics and immense length.
“‘Memphis Tea Party’ protest hits Washington spending spree” — Commercial Appeal
“Perhaps in an effort to show that it wasn’t just a conservative gathering, one woman took the time to write out a sign with a quote from John Galt, a central character in Ayn Rand’s ‘Atlas Shrugged’ — ‘I swear by my life and my love of it that I will never live for the sake of another man, nor ask another man to live for mine.’”
“New York Tea Party” — The New Clarion
“I joined thousands of other protesters yesterday at the ‘Tea Party’ protest at City Hall Park in downtown New York. My sign read on one side, ‘Reason & Capitalism. No Creeping Socialism!’ On the other, it read, ‘Ayn Rand Is Right.’ I saw many signs referring to Atlas Shrugged and Ayn Rand. One Objectivist joined me with his sign that read, ‘Who Is John Galt?’
“We found a strategic spot right alongside Broadway. Many busloads and carloads of commuters got to see ‘Ayn Rand Is Right’ and ‘Who Is John Galt?’ on their way home from work. One person asked us who John Galt was. We told him that if he wants to understand what is wrong with the world and what should be done about it, read Atlas Shrugged. He said he would.”
“Tea Party Summary” — Reality Talk
We at the Ohio Objectivist Society had a great time attending both the Canton and Cleveland tea parties. There were at least a thousand at the first, and at least twice that at the second. We brought about 60 copies of our booklet of reprinted essays, The Portable Objectivist, and 30 copies of Atlas Shrugged to hand out to interested individuals. I also made a few signs: ‘Ayn Rand Was Right’ — ‘Atlas Will Shrug’; ‘Who is John Galt’ — ‘Read Atlas Shrugged’; ‘Free the Market’ — ‘$’ [big green dollar sign].
“Seattle Tea Party Pictures” — Erick’s Blog
“I saw many Objectivist signs: Ayn Rand was right; Who is John Galt? etc. Bill Herman, one of the leading Objectivists in the area was passing out fliers. I think this is an exciting time to be an Objectivist.”
“Tax Day Tea Parties” — The TK Lounge
While this smattering of topics and solutions seemed to get some applause, it might seem pessimistic for objectivists that they were even covered; however, I was able to find the positive in the day…
-There were a lot of signs with Ayn Rand or John Galt on them (about 20%).
-The modern ability for grassroots protesting was impressive. This protest was only put on with the use of the internet and volunteers with very little mass media coverage (as far as I can tell).
-As I mentioned before, the crowd seemed to get more enthusiastic with the objectivist speakers. This shows me that there is a ready and willing population to listen to the ideas that need to be heard. If Rand was hoping for a change in moral philosophy, there is an audience available. This should serve as a call to arms for Objectivists to reach out to these protesters and plant the neccessary seeds. Yaron, Onkar, Keith, others at ARI: become speakers at these protests and get stuff done!!
“Tea time in Morristown” — Daily Record
Ayn Rand had her followers in the audience; One man held up a sign reading, “Who is John Galt?” Presumably, he wanted the curious to ask about the hero of Atlas Shrugged.
