• • • Why Ayn Rand 
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Altruism  |Atlas Shrugged  |Egoism  |Paul Ryan  | At the end of Ayn Rand’s novel Atlas Shrugged—having caused the collapse of the U.S. government and the nation’s infrastructure, having abandoned millions of his fellow citizens to starve in the ruins—super hero John Galt tells his fellow heroes at their secret hideaway that their “strike” is over and that it’s time to rebuild the world. Then there’s this transcendental moment: “He raised his hand and over the desolate Earth he traced in space the sign of the dollar.” It puzzles many why this overwrought melodrama, with its wooden characters and juvenile philosophy, continues in every generation to capture the imagination of thousands of (mostly young) devotees. My personal experience with Rand’s philosophy, called “Objectivism,” suggests to me that its appeal is primarily psychological, not political.  

• SF Bay Times 
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Egoism  | [Marat/Sade] takes place during the Revolution, in the middle of 1793. The scenery makes this Tony Award-winning 1963 theatrical classic by Peter Weiss more contemporary than its setting (July 13, 1808, just after the French Revolution) inserting a modern Occupation Movement theme. Inmates of the asylum have painted the walls with “Solidarity!” “Ryan, Gingrich, Koch Bros.” “Ayn Rand F%$#’s You” and “NRA.”  

• Don’t ask don’t legislate 
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I like that Ron Paul’s son won the GOP Senate primary in Kentucky, because he is a neophyte who will probably be easier for us to beat in November. His name’s Rand. Did Ron name his son after Ayn Rand, I wonder? It’s a dumb name. A loser’s name!