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The tour continues…

Atlas Shrugged – Day 066 – pp. 721-730

I just had a thought. All these men of industry are creating a veritable capitalist paradise in Mulligan’s mysterious valley. Cashing in on the power of their minds. Exchanging value for value.

But. . .

How do they plan to re-enter society? I mean, I’m guessing here, they eventually plan on returning to the world once it’s crushed itself. Rebuilding out of the ashes. Francisco has pretty much said that outright.

The G will fall and the currency will be debased to nothing. . . but how do you erase an ingrained sense of entitlement? How do you wash that out of the public’s psyche?

Sure there will be those who are still of an industrious bent, like our little tramp friend on the train. But like the woman on the train (who I forgot to mention — who felt entitled to transportation — who called Taggart Trans a “common carrier”), how do you purge that out of society? Won’t she still be hanging around somewhere?

I really can’t see them coming back in the face of that. Just wondering. I’m sure we’ll find out. . .

Anyway, on with the show.

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A tour of the grounds

Atlas Shrugged – Day 065 – pp. 711-720

Galt tells Dagny he’s been watching her (from the cafeteria via Eddie) and quotes her thing about the destroyer draining the brains of the world. She asks how long he’s been watching her. . .

“For years.”

The manner in which Rand describes his reply kind of gives me the feeling that maybe John Galt has a thing for Dagny too. I guess I’m not surprised. Hank, Francisco, Eddie and now JG. Will there be a battle for Dagny’s heart at the end? Doesn’t seem like it would fit in this book.

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Obeying expectations… pt. 2

Atlas Shrugged – Day 062 – pp. 679-688 (doubling up to get back on track. . . so to speak)

As they’re walking, Dagny has a bit of a crisis about Nat Taggart. Apparently his memory is sullied in history as having made his fortune by exploiting others. By keeping them down.

Owen tells her he was actually a liberator. People these days just don’t understand.

True, you can’t build an empire on a foundation of morons.

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Obeying the expectation of obedience

Atlas Shrugged – Day 061 – pp. 669-678

Anyway, the tramp is going on about the utter social decay the Starnes kids’ experiment of “from each according to his ability, to each according to his need” created.

It’s a long section, as much of Rand’s stuff tends to get, but it’s an excellent depiction of exactly how the “welfare-mind” destroys productivity.

Anyhow, business continues to decline. As people are no longer paid according to value, the quality of the value they produced – motors – declined precipitously. Selling defective motors ain’t a good business plan.

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The United States of Twentieth Century Motors

Atlas Shrugged – Day 060 – pp. 659-668

So Dagny and the Tramp continue their conversation.

He tells her about his experience most recently at the Hammond Car Company. He waited nearly a year for the job. He got on just as Larry Hammond quit and disappeared. Then the G took over and he was one of the first to get the boot.

Then he tell of a place where he worked for 20 years. Until the owner died and the heirs took over. Could it be? Another visit from the “small world department?”

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Another broken heart

Atlas Shrugged – Day 059 – pp. 649-658

Hey! Hey! You! What’re you doin’ over there. Get back to work. . .

Oh, man. It’s been like week since I’ve written anything here. Been busy with the business though. Hank and Dagny would both be proud. But now that things are caught up on the work side, time to get caught up a little here too.

Going to try to double up for a few days. Not only to catch up, but because this book is getting really damn good! Now, where was I?

Ah yes, Quentin Daniels, the motor physicist, has turned in his resignation on the motor project. Dagny is pushing her trip to Colorado up a day and leaving now.

Hank has snuck out – and Eddie’s come over to take some final notes for while she’s gone.

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Almost to heaven and back to earth

Atlas Shrugged – Day 057 – pp. 629-638

She’s kicking ass and taking names. They’re going to start traffic back and do whatever they have to to get the new lines built. Get men from wherever. Pay ’em double. Pay ’em triple. If any of those UB bitches get in your face, give the locals authority to bribe them. Keep it off the books of course. If they want to stop us, they’ll have to sue me…

Is that true?

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The more you give – the more you get

Atlas Shrugged – Day 056 – pp. 619-628

Dagny’s in awe. And in horror. Horrified awe? Awesome horror?

In any case, I don’t think she still fully gets it. The part about “inaction” actually being action (in this instance.)

She sees things as they are because they (her, Francisco, Hank et al) didn’t work hard enough. Francisco is trying to tell her it’s because they worked too hard. (And didn’t charge enough.)

I think this is where a lot of objection to Rand’s philosophy comes in.   That her idea of “chasing money” is her moral end in itself. It’s not. . .

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Secrets revealed

Atlas Shrugged – Day 053 – pp. 519-528

My God! How long have I been gone! Well the move is about done. Pictures to hang and a few more things to organize, but for the most part, I’m all in. I think I set a world record for how much crap one guy can have. Seriously. The whole damn thing took 4 weeks. I know a guy down here who claims he can throw all his stuff in a duffel bag. I’m jealous.

So where were we? Oh yeah! “another death was all but assured…”

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A mystery visitor

Atlas Shrugged – Day 045 – pp. 439-448

Now we cut back to the Taggart Trans commissary where Eddie is chatting with his anonymous friend once again.

I like Eddie Willers. He’s a good guy. I wonder if there’s going to be a bigger role in this whole story for him.

Anyway, Eddie’s troubled. Hank and Danagger are busted and going on trial next month. Eddie had spoken to Dagny about the coming trial. She’s afraid for Danagger. That he won’t be able to stand the pressure. She believes that as these economic and personal stresses shift from man to man, they each disappear in turn. As if they’re marked men. . .

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A glimmer of hope

Atlas Shrugged – Day 043 – pp. 419-428

He explains briefly to Hank

“Do you know where all those fair share vultures have invested their profits from Rearden Metal?”

“No but — ”

“In d’Anconia Copper stock. Safely out of the way and out of the country.

And then Francisco suddenly gets confused about the time-space continuum. . .

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The wedding crasher

Atlas Shrugged – Day 041 – pp. 399-408

No it’s not a cuisinart.

It’s her husband at the reception. In the presence of so many of whom it will impress.

“Your guests are quite impressed. I can practically hear them thinking all over the room. Most of them are thinking: ‘If he has to seek terms with Jim Taggart, we’d better toe the line.”

So it’s not really a gift. More of an exchange? What’s she want?

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Of receptions and deceptions…

Atlas Shrugged – Day 040 – pp. 389-398

And on and on he’d ramble. About how good Dagny, his “ruthless, conceited bitch” of a sister and Hank Rearden and all the rest of them are at making money. Why wouldn’t they acknowledge his spiritual superiority.

Don’t know Jim.  Maybe if you were living in a monastery. . . but you’re president of a railroad.

Cherryl on the other hand, really had no idea what he is talking about. She does see that he’s in pain, however, and her youthful sympathy, like finding a rabbit or something equally cuddly caught in a trap makes you cry, draws her to him.

Actually did more than that.

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A Taggart merger

Atlas Shrugged – Day 039 – pp. 379-388

Chapter II — The Aristocracy of Pull

Finally a title that makes sense! This is the world we’re living in right now. Where if you are positioned correctly in the right office and know the right people, you can get – do – say – screw just about anyone or anything. H-E-L-L-O Washington.

The calendar in the sky beyond Dagny’s window said September 2. OK. We’re one year into the book — it read exactly the same when Eddie looked up at it on page 2 or 3.

Incidentally, I recently found out that Sept 2 is “Atlas Shrugged Day.” Happy Belated Atlas Shrugged day to all!

The calendar that timed her race to get the JG line built was now “clocking her race against an unknown destroyer.”

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