THE ONE PERCENT

GREED IS GOD

That is not a typo in the title of this piece. Congressman Paul Ryan and many others worship greed and Ann Rand's Atlas Shrugged is their bible. Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck also adore the book as do many right-wing Republicans and some, but by no means all, Wall Streeters. In the book, published in 1957, Rand describes the hero as, “Having been born without the ability to consider others.” This is, of course, characteristic of psychopaths, one of whom Ann Rand idolized: the homicidal maniac William Hickman who slaughter a 13 year old girl.

In The Fifteen Biggest Lies About Capitalism author Joshua Holland details Rand's obsession with the concept of a world without empathy, a world in which each of us seeks only to achieve personal wealth and power. She doesn't even invoke Adam Smith's mysterious “invisible hand,”which he said is somehow able to reap a bit of benefit to all from the avarice of the few. Rand's dream of a world without concern for others leads Newt Gingrich into wanting poor kids to map the floor of their school while the well off students mock them, and to Ryan's plan to slice apart the fabric of what is left of our ragged safety net.

I read an advance copy of the book in the spring of 1957 and hated it. But when I was told to go up to the Brown Derby restaurant to interview her I gathered the film crew and headed up the street. She was sitting in a booth along the north wall with men I presumed represented the publisher. When she saw me and my film crew she hissed that we were schwein, (pigs.) I tried to smile as I spoke in my poor German; Ich nicht ein Schwein, Fraulein, ich bin ein Reporter.” The men in the booth laughed. Ann Rand tossed her glass of water in my face. NBC news carried the spot that night unedited.

However it is not the hard faced German's rudeness, nor even her books, that trouble me now. It is the way her philosophy of soulless selfishness has become an acceptable way of doing business in the world today. Recent research has revealed that even rats have empathy. When another rat is trapped the one who is free attempts to chew off the trap. But if the Randites have their way we will abandon all concern for others and serve only the god of greed. I hope her vision doesn't become reality, but I hope to live long enough to see my government boldly act to punish pathological capitalists.