Underlying Concepts

(http://www.wayfaring.info/2009/07/13/base-jumping-amazing-dont-you-think/)

Over at Jack Balkin's blog I ran across the following post:

http://balkin.blogspot.com/2011/11/constitutional-ideology-ayn-rand.html

It's remarkable that this take down of a "philosophy" which seems to dominate the entire Republican Party is accomplished not by some liberal, but by Whittaker Chambers, and in National Review no less. Says the reviewer of Chambers' piece:

While he had no love for the (socialistic/bureaucratic) governing elite, Chambers pointed out that it did little good to simply “plump for” a would-be “industrial-financial-engineering caste” to take their place. These people, fed on Randian fairly tales about “an aristocracy of talents,” would soon imagine themselves to be “living and acting beyond good and evil, a law unto [themselves].”

As the poster points out earlier, Rep. Paul Ryan requires his staff to read Rand. It is no wonder that the fundamental social contract forged by 200 years of American History is being destroyed by the current edition of the Republican Party. What the Republicans propose to replace democracy with is simply pure power, and we all know that money IS power. Mr. Perry cannot even remember which agency he wants to destroy. Mr. Cain's lawyers threaten anyone who dares to come forward. Mr. Romney tells us over and over that corporations are people. Representative Walsh wants to destroy any government job he can. So goes the week.

And the tragic end to Mr. Paterno's career is a lesson in the failure of near-absolute power, the riot by Penn State students a symptom of how thin the eggshells we stand on really are. The Randians want us to stand on thin air.