The second half of the lengthy title comes from part of a quote by Ayn Rand. Let's read the entire quote first and follow with a brief story of her early life that will help explain it. For those not familiar with Ayn Rand, she gained fame for writing the two critically acclaimed books, "The Fountainhead" and "Atlas Shrugged", both later made into movies and a TV series.
“There is no difference between communism and socialism, except in the means of achieving the same ultimate end: communism proposes to enslave men by force, socialism—by vote. It is merely the difference between murder and suicide.”
― Ayn Rand
She was born Alissa Rosenbaum on Feb. 2, 1905, the eldest of three children of Zinovy Rosenbaum, a prosperous pharmacist in St. Petersburg, which was then the capital of Russia. She was twelve years old going on thirteen when in 1918, after the Russian Revolution, her father's shop, hence his entire business and means of livelihood, was confiscated by the communists who took over running the new government. Through the eyes of a twelve year old girl who witnessed what happened to her family, resentment would have been the least of her emotional responses. Certainly, it must have been more than a temporary psychological trauma to a young girl.
She grew up under communist rule. Later, she studied history at the University of Leningrad, graduated in 1924, but went on to take up cinematography, hoping to become a screenwriter. It was in 1926 upon the invitation of her cousins living in Chicago, when she came to the U.S. She was allowed to leave the communist USSR on the "pretext of gaining expertise that she could apply in the Soviet film industry", according to Britannica.
She changed her name to Ayn Rand (Ayn, pronounced as in fine). Then her life changed even more when she met the famous film director, Cecil B. de Mille (of Ten Commandments fame) that brought her to Hollywood to fulfill her dream of working in the film industry. She became an American citizen in 1931. She went on to become a screenwriter which led her to writing several books including the two mentioned earlier.
Melding her experiences of growing up in communist-ruled Soviet Union, her studies of history and philosophy, and the obvious differences presented by the fortuitous turn of events in her life and those of her relatives in America, became the foundation upon which her whole life's philosophy was based.
Like the thousands upon thousands of immigrants who came to America to seek refuge from the ills and misfortunes they suffered from oppressive regimes of either socialism or communism that prevailed in Eastern Europe and Russia after the Bolshevik revolution and China after Mao's regime, and the aftermath of two world wars, Ayn Rand saw America as an intensely bright beacon for all people around the world.
As a result of her experiences with communist rule and the framework of socialism that it was based upon, Ayn Rand detested the idea of collectivism as a means to supplant the rights of the individual. Collectivism is essentially the engine that powers socialism. Collecting the wealth and resources of the state through central planning and re-distributing it to society as a means of control effectively erases the idea of individualism.
"The horrors of twentieth-century socialism—of Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mussolini, Mao, and Pol Pot—were the offspring of 1917 (Russian Revolution). Seventy years earlier, Marx and Engels predicted the overthrow of bourgeois rule would require violence and “a dictatorship of the proletariat . . . to weed out remaining capitalist elements.” Lenin conducted this “weeding out” using indiscriminate terror, as Russian socialists before him had done and others would continue to do after his death.
The late Rudolph Rummel, the demographer of government mass murder, estimated the human toll of twentieth-century socialism to be about 61 million in the Soviet Union, 78 million in China, and roughly 200 million worldwide. These victims perished during state-organized famines, collectivization, cultural revolutions, purges, campaigns against “unearned” income, and other devilish experiments in social engineering".
In its monstrosity, this terror is unrivaled in the course of human history.
Lenin’s coup on November 7, 1917, the day Kerensky’s provisional government fell to Bolshevik forces, opened a new stage in human history: a regime of public slavery. Collectivist economic planning led to coercion, violence, and mass murder. Marx and Engels had defined socialism as “the abolition of private property. The most fundamental component of private property, self-ownership, was abolished first".
Ayn Rand saw how communism was responsible for the death of millions. She witnessed later in life the pivot to socialism where the same principle of communism was sold to the electorate in democratic systems through legitimate elections. Thus, "It is merely the difference between murder and suicide.”
Socialism has no regard for individualism; neither for individual achievement that will put that person in a position of personal wealth by working harder. Socialism is a world where people like Carnegie, Ford and Rockefeller, Bill Gates and Elon Musk, Steve Jobs and Jeff Bezos will not and cannot exist. These men are examples of the few who in the beginning dreamt as individuals. They were in fact minorities, so to speak, in terms of their dreams and aspirations. Socialism does not recognize the plight of the individual and neither their rights. Society is socialism's ultimate minority and individualism a non-entity.
Ayn Rand came up with and founded the idea of Objectivism - "the philosophy of rational individualism".
She supported "Laissez-faire", that in French means "let it be", which called for as little intervention from the government in the conduct of business and commerce, "suggesting that economies thrive best when left alone". She saw growing up what it was like when the government had its hands and signature in commerce and industry.
Capitalism which embraces the free market and open competition was and still is responsible for innovations, provides fuel for the engine that powers growth and development, along with promoting a responsive business environment for a better economic order. For two hundred fifty years capitalism had worked in this country.
So, what has this all got to do with the New York City election? And the one in Seattle? Both mayoral candidates who won are self described democratic socialists. What is a democratic socialist? A socialist brought to the seat of government through a legitimate democratic process. But if we listen carefully they want to change the very system that gave them the opportunity to be elected.
There are copious amounts of quotes from these socialists that provide insights into their political and social philosophies thru their speeches and responses to questions from the media.
Asked directly whether billionaires should have a right to exist, Mamdani, the new mayor-elect in New York, who identifies himself as a democratic socialist, told NBC News’ “Meet the Press,” “I don’t think that we should have billionaires because, frankly, it is so much money in a moment of such inequality, and ultimately, what we need more of is equality across our city and across our state and across our country.”
Both mayor-elects (New York and Seattle) and several others who aspire for election in other states/cities have a common agenda - change the system that had worked for two hundred years with something called socialism, as if this is a new thing. Socialism has never worked anywhere it was tried and it will still not work even if dressed with a different set of clothing. It has not worked in the USSR, Cuba, Venezuela and everywhere it was implemented because it stifles individuals from innovating and striving for excellence.
Ayn Rand believes that:
"Objectivism holds that there is no greater moral goal than achieving one's happiness. But one cannot achieve happiness by wish or whim. It requires rational respect for the facts of reality, including the facts about our human nature and needs. It requires living by objective principles, including moral integrity and respect for the rights of others. Politically, Objectivists advocate laissez-faire capitalism".
"Objectivism is benevolent, holding that the universe is open to human achievement and happiness and that each person has within him the ability to live a rich, fulfilling, independent life."
Let's hear from another notable lady from recent history, Margaret Thatcher:
"In her famous quote, Margaret Thatcher succinctly captures the essence of socialism, highlighting a fundamental flaw in its economic structure. "The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money." These words capture the essence of an economically unsustainable system, where the reliance on redistributing wealth can lead to an inevitable depletion of resources. Thatcher's statement serves as a cautionary reminder that without a balanced approach to economic policies, societies may face severe consequences. The meaning behind Thatcher's quote is straightforward. Socialism, as an economic and political ideology, aims to create a more equitable society by redistributing wealth and resources. However, this approach neglects one crucial aspect: somebody has to generate the wealth in the first place. While sharing wealth and providing equal opportunities are admirable goals, they are dependent upon the investment, entrepreneurship, and innovation that come from individuals and businesses.
We hear it from these new politicians (new in the U.S., anyway) that there is a need to "tax the rich" in this country to achieve a proper distribution of wealth in the ultimate noble goal towards equity.
Perhaps, the silver lining, if there is going to be one, is that New York City and Seattle will become shining examples to showcase once again the folly and ultimate failure of socialism.
On the other hand, we might see dark clouds gathering if for some reason the unthinkable does happen. That is a scenario I do not wish for this great land which I described four years ago in,
"2050: The Ebb of the Tragic Trajectory of a Once Powerful Nation"
Link: https://abreloth.blogspot.com/2021/10/2050-ebb-of-tragic-trajectory-of-once.html
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