Atlas Shrugged and Capitalism

Ayn Rand’s book “Atlas Shrugged” from the 1960s is very entertaining and almost prophetic.

In a future society, where capitalism is maligned as selfish, and where wealthy industrialists are shamed into paying their fair share, the government is mandating how much steel a company can produce to give inefficient government-sponsored competitors a chance to catch up.

When Hank Reardon, the owner of a large steel company disregarded those orders, he was dragged before an administrative court, accused of being greedy and thus hurting the common good of the people.  He readily acknowledged that he was in business to make money, but then challenged the court by saying that he did more for the common people than the government did.  

Hank demonstrated that he was producing value for the people while the government only confiscated what the industry produced.

With the room full of “common” people, Hank proclaimed that he, in making money, employed over a thousand people, putting bread on the table for many more families and keeping small businesses profitable.  When the audience erupted in applause, the court could do nothing to punish Hank Reardon without creating a riot, and their tyrannical hypocrisy was exposed.

The Bible warns us against coveting (Deut 20:17).  God gave us the Ten Commandments so that we could live successful and peaceful lives in the land He gave us.  There can be no peace if we covet what others have, most importantly, we cannot have peace in our own minds if we do.  We need to be thankful for what God has given us and be satisfied with that (Rom 1:21, Luk 12:15).

We should never claim that rich people need to contribute more, and we should not use the sorry outliers – the playboys – as justification for our claims.  The government only wastes money on inefficient programs that will cost even more in the future.  

Most rich people, on the other hand, use their money to invest in companies, create new ventures and update existing companies to make them more efficient.  They use their resources in the most efficient way they know to increase their own wealth and thereby increase the gross domestic product as well. Thus, they employ more people directly and help other businesses to do the same.  In the long run, the additional employment numbers cause wages to rise, and all of these factors benefit everyone, not only the rich.  In addition, the government receives more in additional taxes paid on higher wages and the additional jobs created.

But what about those playboys who inherited their wealth and are just squandering it, you might ask.  They also keep many people employed by their riotous living.  Let them live their lives as they wish, causing their wealth to return back to where it does the most good: the general economy; and we all benefit from that as well.

It was capitalism that created and sustained the middle class. Large government destroys the middle class and creates a two-class society.