"Francisco's Money Speech"

[LandonCook]

"So you think that money is the root of all evil?" said Francisco d'Anconia. "Have you ever asked what is the root of money? Money is a tool of exchange, which can't exist unless there are goods produced and men able to produce them. Money is the material shape of the principle that men who wish to deal with one another must deal by trade and give value for value. Money is not the tool of the moochers, who claim your product by tears, or of the looters, who take it from you by force. Money is made possible only by the men who produce. Is this what you consider evil?

"When you accept money in payment for your effort, you do so only on the conviction that you will exchange it for the product of the effort of others. It is not the moochers or the looters who give value to money. Not an ocean of tears not all the guns in the world can transform those pieces of paper in your wallet into the bread you will need to survive tomorrow. Those pieces of paper, which should have been gold, are a token of honor--your claim upon the energy of the men who produce. Your wallet is your statement of hope that somewhere in the world around you there are men who will not default on that moral principle which is the root of money, Is this what you consider evil?... http://www.capmag.com/article.asp?ID=1826

[jkr]

note-"the love of money..."

i think HE is speaking to greed

[Mesogen]

God damn, that book is terrible.

[revolutionman]

I prefer The Godfather personally.

[Thrashertm]

God damn, that book is terrible.

I heartily enjoyed it.

[Kraig]

The speech was my favorite part of the book.

[Conza88]

Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged and good introductory stuff. Because they are novels.

They use EMOTIONALISM, to get the point across. It spurs the reader on to learn more about individualism, capitalism etc.

Stick to just Rand, join the Objectivists, etc... and it becomes a cult. No word of a lie.

So give the book to beginners etc, but get them onto Ron Paul, and the Austrian School.

[Cap]

The book is a blue print of what is happening today.

[Mesogen]

I wish the book weren't 1100 pages and written like the script of a 50s TV drama interspersed with bits of a romance novel.


check this version out:

http://www.spudworks.com/article/66/2/

:)

[Kraig]

I wish the book weren't 1100 pages and written like the script of a 50s TV drama interspersed with bits of a romance novel.

I really enjoyed how long it was with all the twists and what not. When I first read it I started off thinking the whole book would be about them trying to build the John Galt Line, talk about way off lol.

[Mesogen]

Twists?

It was QUITE predictable. What I couldn't predict was the number of times I'd be hammered over the head with the theme of the book.

Over and over and over and over, again and again and again and again, it was the same scene fifty different ways. After the socialist, moocher, looter devil tries to control the business of the objectivist, capitalist, industrialist hero, the objectivist, capitalist, industrialist hero lectures the socialist, moocher, looter devil about what it means to live and work and earn money. After about 500 pages of this, I'm like "OK! I get it, get on with the story. This fiftieth scene with the exact same theme making the exact same point is unnecessary. Just get on with it."

That's why the book has no business being 1100 pages. It could have easily been 300-400 pages and been the same damned crappy book.

[LandonCook]

Fountainhead and Atlas Shrugged and good introductory stuff. Because they are novels.

They use EMOTIONALISM, to get the point across. It spurs the reader on to learn more about individualism, capitalism etc.

Stick to just Rand, join the Objectivists, etc... and it becomes a cult. No word of a lie.

So give the book to beginners etc, but get them onto Ron Paul, and the Austrian School.

I love how no one with a real argument, brands rational egoism as a cult to exalt some higher purpose. Morality is something all men must practice, and you have two options in seeking that morality. The morality of others, and the morality of Ego.

[Conza88]

I love how no one with a real argument, brands rational egoism as a cult to exalt some higher purpose. Morality is something all men must practice, and you have two options in seeking that morality. The morality of others, and the morality of Ego.

The Sociology of the Ayn Rand Cult (http://www.lewrockwell.com/rothbard/rothbard23.html)

Just for starters. Want me to link to the books, articles, and myriad of other sources about her's and disciple Brandens cult? Exerts from NUMEROUS people who got out of it and wrote pieces detailing it for what it was.

Rand accused others of stealing ideas, when in fact it was she. She owes an intellectual debt to MORE than Aristotle. She's was an arrogant, bitter, pessimistic person, who refused to acknowledge those she had learnt from.

I've read all her novels btw, and own them.