As the current economic depression worsens, a novel written in 1957 is sharply increasing in popularity. It currently ranks #13 on Amazon. It's the story of how the world, particularly the United States, slowly collapses as governments seize more and more power over the private sector. Sound familiar? The collapse is accentuated by the disappearance of the most productive members of society as they join a strike led by John Galt, a mysterious engineering genius.The book's opening line is Who is John Galt? This phrase is repeated throughout the book. It sarcastically means, "Don't ask important questions, because we don't have answers," or more broadly, "What's the point?" or "Why bother?"
Galt describes the strike as "stopping the motor of the world" by withdrawing the "minds" that drive society's growth and productivity; with their strike these creative minds hope to demonstrate that the economy and society would collapse without the profit motive and the efforts of the rational and productive.
The book is called Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand.
I own several versions of it but have read none of them yet. I feel like I need to be in the right frame of mind to read it and I don't think I'm there yet. I have been training though. I've read The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand after writing about it back in Post No. 47. It has since become one of my favorite books. The character of Howard Roark will not easily be forgotten.
Today I learned that Atlas Shrugged is being made into a movie.
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