Ayn Rand, Objectivism, And The God That Failed

No social/political philosopher in history illustrates both the successes and failures of Enlightenment rationalism more effectively than Ayn Rand. Her philosophy of Objectivism, which reached a mass audience through her magnum opus, "Atlas Shrugged," had a significant influence on the contemporary liberty movement. In my opinion, this influence had both positive and negative attributes in terms of the progress of the movement.

On the positive side, it is unlikely that the ideas of radical capitalism could have reached as large an audience in such an inspiring manner if she had never immigrated to the United States from the Soviet Union. And it is unlikely that so many fine minds of the modern libertarian movement would have collaborated, networked and given each other moral support without her as the catalyst.

On the negative side, her towering ego and lack of critical self examination led to the ultimate oxymoron -- a personality cult led by a supposed advocate of individualism in which strict adherence to the ideology of the leader was demanded and no dissent tolerated. The twin gods of ontological materialism (which she and her followers accepted on faith) and the perfectibility of humankind allowed some of the most irrational, collectivist doctrine to be asserted as being unquestionably objective truth.

Here is the problem with Enlightenment rationalism untempered by a humane element, in my opinion: Two people can observe the same phenomenon and apply supposedly the same tools of rational thought and come to vastly different conclusions about the nature of the phenomenon. Those who understand modern physics will explain this quandary in the following manner -- even if there is an objective reality, it can be known only to God (or nature, if you will) and can never be directly perceived by a human being. This is a limitation of the nature of reality, and no amount of self aggrandizement can alter that.

As a couple of examples illustrate, Ayn Rand was not the perfect arbiter of objective reality she claimed to be. One example is that she believed cigarette smoking to be life enhancing, and she had little tolerance for non-smokers (she ultimately died of lung cancer). Another is that she genuinely believed an 80% tax to fund military expenditures was less onerous than a 5% tax to support social welfare programs.

Whether one is ultimately influenced by Ayn Rand in a positive manner instead of a negative manner (or influenced by anyone for that matter) ultimately depends on his heart and not his mind.

At one extreme is the true libertarian, the person who genuinely has human well being as his main consideration - i.e. one who exhibits profound self restraint with regard to the use of violence. What does this person take from the Ayn Rand experience? He learns tolerance, civility, productivity, responsibility, and even a sense of charity, along with an inspirational appreciation for the theme of the triumph of the human spirit.

At the other extreme is the real life example of Ayn Rand's intellectual heir, Leonard Peikoff. This man has so twisted the notions of individualism into a form of rampant collectivism that he justifies in print killing every single person in the nation of Iraq.

While I think the Ayn Rand phenomenon has been a net accelerator of the progress of the liberty movement, I believe doctrinaire Objectivists are a burden on the movement, and their steadily waning influence on it is still holding back its progress among the people at large. This should surprise no one, as most intelligent people of good will can see through the inconsistencies and absurd assumptions of Objectivism.