FRANKFORT —
FRANKFORT — It’s not the tea party which has captured the intellectual soul of the modern Republican Party — it’s Ayn Rand.
Rand, the Russian-born author and champion of individualism and unfettered capitalism, wrote “The Fountainhead,” “Atlas Shrugged” and “The Virtue of Selfishness” and developed the philosophy she termed Objectivism.
She explained Objectivism this way: Reality exists as an objective fact; reason is man’s only means of perceiving reality; every man is an end in himself, owing nothing to others; the pursuit of his own rational self-interest and of his own happiness is the highest moral purpose of his life.
I was briefly seduced by Rand in my 20s. Her novels are seductive. Her protagonists Howard Roark and John Galt are heroic, charismatic Atlases standing astride a mundane and banal collectivist society in which only a few are creators and producers while the rest are “moochers.” The reader is seduced because of course he sees himself as a producer and not a moocher.
But man is only an “end in himself” whose “rational self-interest [and] happiness [are] the highest moral purpose of his life” if there is nothing greater than himself. Her entire philosophy and its every tenet rest fundamentally upon her atheism. It is intellectually defensible only if one believes there is no God. That’s fine — if you are an atheist.
That’s why it intrigues me that so many conservative Republicans are so enamored of Rand.
In 2003, while running for governor Ernie Fletcher, a deeply religious man and lay preacher, told John David Dyche, the op-ed contributor of The Courier-Journal, that his two favorite books are the Bible and “Atlas Shrugged.”
Rand Paul, who grew up as Randy Paul, says his wife began calling him Rand. But on the morning after Paul defeated Trey Grayson for the 2010 Republican nomination of the U.S. Senate, he demonstrated an uncommon knowledge of Rand and her personal life, including her profound influence on Alan Greenspan and her habit of excluding from her circle anyone who professed a belief in Christianity, which she described as “the best kindergarten of communism possible.”
The latest example, of course, is Paul Ryan, the Wisconsin Republican U.S. Representative and budget wonk who now is Mitt Romney’s running mate.
For years the devout Catholic told anyone who asked that Rand was his intellectual mentor and reason he chose to study economics. He used to require his congressional interns to read “Atlas Shrugged.” Lately Ryan has publicly distanced himself from Rand. Like Fletcher, he rejects her atheism.
“I reject her philosophy. It’s an atheist philosophy,” he told Politico last week.
Matters of conscience are just that, and whether it’s Paul Ryan or Barack Obama I’ve always believed one must accept another’s profession of faith because no one can see into another’s heart and mind. Nor am I condemning non-believers.
I have hard enough time worrying about my own soul without presuming I can save someone else’s. As a professed Christian, I read the words of Jesus to say it’s not for me to judge others.
But when I read Paul Ryan’s budget proposals I still wonder — like the Catholic bishops who criticized it as a moral failing — how he can justify what it does to the poor and weak in light of the Sermon on the Mount?
I wonder sometimes if the rank-and-file tea partiers realize the logical implications of some of their stated beliefs.
And I wonder how so many of today’s conservative Republicans can profess faith in both Christ and Ayn Rand.
As professed Christians they surely believe no man can serve two masters.
Ronnie Ellis writes for CNHI News Service and is based in Frankfort. Reach him at rellis@cnhi.com. Follow CNHI News Service stories on Twitter at www.twitter.com/
cnhifrankfort.
Viewpoints
Related Photos
-
Ronnie Ellis
Jesus or Ayn Rand? Who guides the tea party’s intellectual soul?
- Viewpoints
-
-
Graduation Day
It is that time of year again.
Some years ago, I was invited to speak at the graduation ceremonies of a liberal arts college. Later, many in the audience told me they expected a very political speech. Some of them were relieved; others were disappointed. I don't do politics at graduation.
Graduation is about life.
My high school graduation was OK. I gave a speech. My family was there, intact, probably as happy as they ever were (But did I know?). We went out for Chinese food afterward. -
Coal problem worth tackling in Washington and Frankfort
Despite hysterical cries from radical environmentalists, neither Sen. Rand Paul’s Defense of Environment and Property Act nor Sen. Mitch McConnell’s Coal Jobs Protection Act would allow activities that bring harm to Kentucky’s wildlife or waterways for the sake of propping up the coal industry.
-
Peter Perlman — Life lessons from a lawyer’s lawyer
One of the great moments of my life was sitting next to legendary Louisville attorney Frank Haddad at a luncheon when he learned he had received the first Peter Perlman Outstanding Trial Lawyer award from the Kentucky Academy of Trial Lawyers.
As they started his bio, the surprised Frank started crying like a baby. A sudden heart attack took him less than a year later. Winning the Perlman award was the crowning achievement of his career. -
Credit score insanity
Frequently, people stop me and ask me personal finance questions.
The most common is how to improve their credit history score.
If you need to improve your credit score, it means you have lousy credit. Before fixing the score, people need to ask how their credit got so bad to begin with. -
‘Tells’ about who will blow their money
Kentucky Derby week is one where gambling takes a forefront in my life. Along with the non-stop activities in my home state, I am speaking at a dinner for the Society of Settlement Professionals in Las Vegas and a film crew from Italy is flying in from Rome to interview me for a documentary about lottery winners.
-
Viewpoints change when critics gain power
Scandals like those roiling Washington often look more or less nefarious as time and facts unfold. After all, what at first looked like a third-rate burglary turned into Watergate.
I doubt the scandals around Benghazi, the IRS and subpoenas of Associated Press phone records reach Watergate status — but we must await more information and time to know. -
Trouble’s last ride
When announcing my retirement, I made reference to letting “Trouble” having one last ride.
-
Going from school to work requires preparation, faith
(Editor’s Note: After graduating from EKU on Saturday, Seth Littrell came to work Monday at the Richmond Register as a reporter/photographer.)
This past Saturday weekend I graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with my bachelor’s in journalism.
It was the single goal I had been working toward for the past four years, and as I walked across that stage I realized I was the first person in my family to do so. -
Report on former EKU Center for the Arts director called 'biased, unfair'
I am writing in response to the Richmond Register’s May 3, 2013, article concerning the former Executive Director of the EKU Center for the Arts. The article I reference appeared on the front page of your newspaper with the headline “Sexual harassment, other offenses alleged in Hoskin’s records in 740 pages of documents.”
-
Recognizing those who provide care
How fitting it is that the beginning of National Nursing Home Week is Mother’s Day, May 12.
- More Viewpoints Headlines
-
Officials: Truck Hit Bridge Before Collapse
Sheriff: No Sign Killing of 2 Kids Was Planned
Obama Defends Drone Strikes, With Limits
Raw: Jurors Deadlock on Jodi Arias Penalty
Boy Scouts Decision "First Step" Say Activists
Raw: Utah Teen Arrested in Death of His Brothers
Closer Look at Okla. School Where Children Died
Two Suspects in Murder Known to London Police
Boy Scouts Mom Supports Gay Inclusiveness
"Be Ready": NOAA Warns of Busy Hurricane Season
SeaWorld: Penguins Are Coolest Thing in Florida
Obama Renews Call to Close Gitmo
Obama Offers Drone Strike Defense
Raw: Heckler Interrupts Obama on Guantanamo
A Slice of Apple History Up for Grabs
