Ayn Rand

[Dave Monroe]

... her discourse has indeed infected yours then, jbor ("Language is a
virus"--Wm. S. Burroughs).  And I did indeed marvel the last time I
encountered a bona fide Ayn Rand fan who still "lavish[es] much
attention on Thomas Pynchon's texts," but no longer.  Nothing in life
needs be coherent, not in any obvious way, esp. when it comes to taste,
for which there is indeed no accounting.  But, interestingly, we once
again seem violently to agree on something.  Hope you've seen both the
nigh-unto-hagiographic documentary, Ayn Rand: A Sense of Life, as well
as the rather less flattering (and far more enjoyable) "biopic," The
Passion of Ayn Rand (then again, I laughed more at the documentary, so
...), read Jeff Walker's The Ayn Rand Cult (LaSalle, IL: Open Court,
1998).  Sorry if this is a disappointment, but you will never be the
thorn in my side yr so-called "Objectivists" typically prove to be.  A
couple of quick notes: you're no doubt aware that U.S. Federal Reserve
Chairman Alan Greenspan was a member of her circle, but, as you've
raised that Rush thing, I think it's largely only drummer Neal Peart
involved, but, then again, take another listen to "Trees" (from
Hemispheres) ...

There is unrest in the forest
There is trouble with the trees
For the maples want more sunlight
And the oaks ignore their pleas

The trouble with the maples
And they're quite convinced the're right
They say the oaks are just too lofty
And they grab up all the light

But the oaks can't help their feelings
If they like the way they're made
And they wonder why the maples
Can't be happy in their shade

There is trouble in the forest
And the creatures all have fled
As the maples scream "Oppression!"
And the oaks just shake their heads

So the maples formed a union
And demanded equal rights
The oaks are just too greedy
We will make them give us light

Now there's no more oak oppression
For they passed a noble law
And the trees are all kept equal
By hatchet, axe, and saw

... talk about yr "Objectivist" railing against "collectivism," no?
Does shed some light on things there.  Okay, now where were we ...