Piercing the Veil

Of course, all this liberal blustering and attacking Ayn Rand is purposefully circumventing the actual topic. When you can't refute the message, you simply beat up the messenger.

Liberals thrive on attacking those who acquire wealth through achievement. One of the underlying subtexts of Atlas Shrugged (the source of the Rand quote) is the nihilism of those who cannot abide individual success and achievement. Because this nihilism is so antithetical to even the most basic human nature and existence, liberals cover it up with grand adjectives about "caring," "fairness," and "compassion." As Thomas Sowell points out, these terms are specifically designed to circumvent debate on the actual topic. In truth, there is nothing unfair, uncaring, or uncompassionate about capitalism. Capitalism is simply a system of understanding that seeks to describe human nature in the context of an economy. However, because capitalism is based on individuals exercising independent decisions based on subjective risk-reward assessments, it represents a threat to the self-importance of collectivists and liberals. The liberal anointed cannot maintain a sense of self-worth without dispensing largesse to those whom they consider benighted. A system of individual and undirected economic decisions functions for the benefit of all without the forced largesse offered by the liberal illuminati, hence their strong reactions to it.

As with any economic system, there are those who pervert the system for nefarious ends. Because actual evidence is irrelevant to the viewpoint of liberals, anecdotes of the rare individuals who abuse the system will be trumpeted loudly in an attempt to demonstrate the intrinsic evil of the system. These arguments completely ignore the millions of people who practice capitalism to substantial mutual and societal benefit each and every day.

Of particular interest is the tendency to subvert the teachings of Christianity to meet the needs of the liberal anointed in furthering their nihilism. Hiding Marxist redistributionism behind ideas presented in the New Testament is accomplished by amplifying the vaguely collectivist tone of some of the authors of the books therein. This vaguely collectivist tone is largely due to the Essene and Zealot traditions from which the authors arose. However, there is nothing in the reported words of Christ and their attendant message, nor in the total bulk of the epistles of the disciples that is directed at any collective, society, government, or, most decidedly, economy. Indeed, there is much in the New Testament that directly abuses the mob and group-think outlook and behavior. For this reason, those who seek to warp the fabric of scripture to condone Marxist redistributionism or planned economies tend to avoid directly referencing said scripture and usually stick to paraphrasing or digesting the content in order to propagandize it to their end.

So what better fodder for those who use this vague and amorphous Christian shroud to attack capitalism than an atheist who has mounted some of the most effective arguments against collectivism and planned economies ever presented. There is an ironic double standard being applied. The emotional and shallow arguments against capitalism using the thin veil of pseudo-Christianity provide a perfect platform from which to mount a refutation of Miss Rand's anti-collectivist rhetoric. True to form, the refutation has no substance, but simply takes the form of, "Since I represent Christianity in favor of collectivism, it is obvious that an atheist can have nothing worthwhile to offer the debate." The irony being that the liberal who shrouds himself in this veil is representing nothing of the sort.