Atlas Shrugged

When I was in high school, I was in no way interested in politics. I just wanted to trust that the public would vote the right people into power and the government would do what was in our best interest. That’s what they taught us in class, right? How bills become laws and those laws are passed to protect us citizens and make society better as a whole.

I never understood why my Dad was so outraged when watching the news, reading the paper or discussing politics. He was a dentist. Our lives seemed pretty good. I use the word “discussing” loosely. He would yell talk at me and my siblings trying to explain why something the government was being applauded for was actually going to have many negative consequences that would never be talked about on TV. His face would get red, his eyes would bulge, and I would start thinking about how awful his funeral was going to be when he died of a heart attack before he had a chance to retire. At dinner parties, my Mom struggled to segue away from triggering subjects but it was almost impossible since the government was involved in everything. That was part of the problem, according to my Dad.

My response to his yell talking rants was usually a glassy-eyed stare and raised eyebrows that asked, “Are you done yet?” and, “What’s the big deal?”. I was already learning about the different types of government. Socialism and communism didn’t sound so bad. Who wouldn’t want to live in a world where you received what you needed? No one would be homeless. People with disabilities would be provided for. Billionaires wouldn’t exist. I didn’t understand why people insisted these types of government wouldn’t work.

It is easy to understand if you watch the narrative unfold.

My Dad realized I may not have the attention span for his tirades, but I am an avid reader. I regularly sat down and read for hours at a time. He decided maybe a story would make his point for him and he urged me repeatedly to read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. I felt that if it helped lower by Dad’s blood pressure and reduced the number of rants, it seemed like a fair compromise. It was by far one of the hardest books I have ever read, but I was hooked the entire time. (Except for the 40-page radio speech. I admittedly skipped that).

The book is full of young, smart, ambitious business people who should have no difficulties being successful. Except the system is rigged because politicians pass laws that are worded to make it sound like resources are being shared equitably when in actuality the laws favour their friends. The friends squander the resources as there is no incentive for them to problem solve or run their businesses efficiently if their political contacts will bail them out. Until one man decides to break the system. Who is John Galt? It had mystery, it had underdogs, it had love, it had betrayals, and it had me incredibly entertained.

Atlas Shrugged is a controversial book and I am not writing this essay to debate liberalism vs. conservatism or capitalism vs. socialism vs. communism. Every type of government and economic system has its’ issues and hypocrisy.

As a health care professional working in a capitalist democracy, I have seen similar laws passed, like the ones in Atlas Shrugged, that on the surface, seemed beneficial and fair, but in practice were harmful and manipulative. A funding program that helped people pay for walkers and wheelchairs was altered to “save patients money”. But it reduced profit margins for the businesses that sold the equipment so significantly, that the businesses either had to stop selling the equipment or charge extra for things that they used to provide for free. Inevitably, it ended up actually costing patients more money. But patients didn’t know the difference because they had never had to purchase this equipment before. The only one that saved money in the end, was the government. It was frustrating.

Atlas Shrugged made my world gray. It sucked, initially, to realize that there are many issues that are not clear cut. But when you start to see the world in shades of grey, it means you’re becoming a critical thinker. Which brings me to the first reason Atlas Shrugged changed my life.

We can never be complacent and trust our government. You do not need to be paranoid (technology is getting out of control so maybe you do a little), but it is our job as citizens to keep the government as honest as possible so they do not “pull a fast one” on us. Always dig deeper to find out what truly motivated them to make a decision and whether it had the result they claim they intended. And if it had more negative consequences than positive, hold them accountable.

The second reason Atlas Shrugged changed my life was reading fiction made me smarter. I learned more about the effect bad policies and corrupt governments can have on its’ citizens then I ever learned in civics class.

My dating life is quite the failure and one of the regular reasons I decide to end things with a guy is because he does not read fiction. Reading is one of three hobbies I engage in, so being able to talk about it with my life partner is kind of important to me. It’s frustrating when a guy says he reads, but then follows that with, “I only read non-fiction though. Economics, history, you know, stuff about the real world that I can use.” I read non-fiction too, don’t get me wrong, but not reading fiction because a person believes it won’t help them understand the world or add value to their life makes me worry about their empathetic intelligence. (I’m not hating on men. I’m sure women say this too, it’s just I only date men so I hear it from them more often.)

A person can read a fact like more than six million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust, and, technically, they do have a better understanding of how horrible it was, but reading a fictitious story narrated by Death about a young Aryan girl who doesn’t understand why her friends are being harassed and disappearing during World War Two (The Book Thief) will add feeling to those facts.

We cannot read each other’s minds and we are only given one life to live so it can be really hard to understand other people’s experiences and the complicated societal systems that contribute to them. A fiction novel allows us to immerse ourselves in another perspective to better understand each other.

During the Black Lives Matter movement, I read the non-fiction How to be an Antiracist and the novel The Vanishing Half. When the bones of thousands of indigenous children were found near residential schools, I read the autobiography They Called me Number One and the novel Five Little Indians. If there is something going on in the world that I don’t understand that clearly has a complicated history and is affecting people today, I read a combination of books to reduce my ignorance. You get the facts and you develop empathy.

My Dad was a small business owner and a health care professional. Atlas Shrugged helped me understand big concepts about government, laws, and economics and how they can drastically alter the lives of little individuals. I learned how important it is for me to pay attention to my government and I was more empathetic to my Dad’s political rages. Fiction can do that.

And yes, he did reach retirement without a heart attack, fewer rants and a few grandchildren.