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Going Galt

Going Galt

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March 23, 2011

"Tea parties." "Going Galt." You've probably seen a growing number of references to these in the media, online, and on signs at rallies reacting to new government spending and controls.

The Boston Tea Party was a rebellion against excessive government. Today's "tea parties" say "no" to spending without limit and the government takeover of our lives.


"Going Galt!" If you've read Ayn Rand 's  Atlas Shrugged , you appreciate the parallels between today's disintegrating world and the events depicted in that prophetic novel.  Atlas Shrugged  is the story ofhow productive people went on strike, withdrawing their services in protest against a society that damned them for being productive and expropriated the fruits of their labor.

The ideas in  Atlas Shrugged  can be powerful moral weapons to roll back the forces of repression and irrationality. The Atlas Society is your premier source for information on those ideas. We've compiled this page to help you understand the whole "Going Galt" phenomenon.

WHAT IS "GOING GALT?"

  • "Going Galt" doesn't simply mean getting angry. That would be "Going Postal." It means having righteous indignation at the injustice of a political system that bails out individuals and institutions for irresponsible behavior and at the expense of those like you who prosper through hard work and personal responsibly.
  • "Going Galt" means asking in the face of new taxes and government controls, "Why work at all?" "For whom am I working?" "Am I a slave?"
  • "Going Galt" means recognizing that you're being punished not for your vices but for your virtues.
  • "Going Galt" means recognizing that you have a moral right to your own life, the pursuit of your own happiness, and thus to the rewards you've earned with your labor.
  • "Going Galt" means recognizing that you deserve praise and honor for your achievements rather than damnation as "exploiters."
  • "Going Galt" means recognizing that you do not need to justify your life or wealth to your neighbors, "society," or politicians, or bureaucrats. They're yours, period!
  • "Going Galt" means recognizing that the needs of others do not give them a claim to your time, effort, and achievements.
  • "Going Galt" means shrugging off unearned guilt, refusing to support your own destroyers, refusing to give them what Ayn Rand termed "the sanction of the victim." It means taking the moral high ground by explicitly rejecting as evil the premise of "self-sacrifice" that they sell to you as a virtue— in fact "self-sacrifice" is an invitation to suicide.

TOOLS FOR FIGHTING BACK

We at The Atlas Society want you to fight back, to express both your moral outrage and your hopes for a better future, and to be more effective by helping us to help you.

On our website you will find  a wealth of information and insight  about  Atlas Shrugged . You'll find  clear explanations of Rand's philosophy, Objectivism , by expert writers. You'll find an arsenal of intellectual ammunition needed to prevail against the assault on your freedom. And we're devoting all our time and attention to a new website that, like cruise missiles, will better delivery moral bombs to the targets of envy and resentment.

Atlas Shrugged  is still incredibly popular, five decades after its publication, because it offers a dramatic moral defense of the right to individuals live for their own sakes and a vision of a benevolent society based in reason, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Atlas Shrugged at 50: a Tribute in The New Individualist  

All about Atlas Shrugged: expert analysis, plot synopses, and more

The revolt against taxes: collected Atlas Society commentary

IS ATLAS SHRUGGING TODAY? HARD-HITTING COMMENTARY FROM THE ATLAS SOCIETY

Edward Hudgins, "Ragnar Shrugged."

Edward Hudgins, "Atlas Chased."


Edward Hudgins, "Atlas Forced into Early Retirement."  

Thor Halvorssen, "Is John Galt Venezuelan?"  

THE "GOING GALT" PHENOMENON

Helen Smith got it all started  with this post .

Megan McArdle took note in The Atlantic online:  "Atlas raised his Eyebrows"

Chris Sullentrop  surveyed the "Going Galt" scene  for the New York Times.

"Going Galt" means  a Return to Revolution  in The New Individualist, Spring 2009 issue.

David N. Mayer, "Completing the American Revolution"

William R Thomas, "Individual Rights: The Objectivist View"  

David Kelley, "The Fourth Revolution"  

Edward Hudgins
About the author:
Edward Hudgins

Edward Hudgins, former Director of Advocacy and Senior Scholar at The Atlas Society, is now President of the Human Achievement Alliance and can be reached at ehudgins@humanachievementalliance.org.

Atlas Shrugged
Ayn Rand's Ideas and Influence