It’s too bad the mis-quote is from Rand, because it’s actually a great saying for a t-shirt…within the context of feminism, not architecture (or politics).
or consent…
I think this highlights a lot of the problems I have with quote-ware.
I’ve heard that quote a lot from the douchiest douches in my professional experience, but never knew it was from Rand. Those guys now trouble me more deeply…
since Rand is such a rigorous thinker, i’d always wanted to see an Aristotelian proof that there is even a distinction between the two.
also, what is it with losers waiting for public transportation enthusiastically reading The Fountainhead? it happens fairly often, and always makes me chuckle. it would only be funnier at the state unemployment office.
Two words.
Ayn Rant.
Even if the quote was accurate I don’t think you’re supposed to attribute things said by fictional characters as if they were said by the writers who created them. It changes the context, to say the least.
“I must confess to you: I’m giving serious thought to eating your wife.” –Thomas Harris (Hannibal)
Maybe they weren’t born enlightened, like yourself.
oooooooooooooohhhhhh, burn!
if reading The Fountainhead actually improved people, or even made them into more functional psychopaths, the country would be a much different place.
As in so many other Koch-fueled efforts, they’ve been led by the nose to an enticing trough full of shit. Leading them by the nose, you see, makes it easy to pinch it shut.
Well, what would Rand tell those who aren’t born enlightened to do? Those parasites at the bus stop are clearly dragging retchdog down, overall.
That is a bitchin’ octopus avatar that you’re sporting!
It was not so long ago that Lululemon was doing something similar.
I’d agree with you, except for the fact that Rand was writing her “fiction” with the express purpose of showing what she thought reality should be.
Just reading The Fountainhead doesn’t make you a psychopath. I actually found it to be a fascinating glimpse into the psyche of Ayn Rand’s followers. For example:
- The hero doesn’t let society’s norms stop him from doing anything. For example, he expresses his affection for the heroine by breaking into her room and raping her (but that’s OK because she was a cocktease who secretly wanted it).
- The villain is hellbent on destroying the hero simply because he detests excellence and has dedicated his life to stomping it out. That’s the real motivation for anyone who tries to stand up for the little people, you know: a love of the mediocre and a pure, undying hatred for anything that smacks of Real Genius.
- The most pathetic, pitiable character is a young woman who “wastes” her life running programs for special needs children.
In a timely example of life imitating art, my mother emailed me today with something new: a signature quote.
Free people are not equal. Equal people are not free.
This would be a similar twisting of an actual quote by a famous person…in this case, Milton Friedman.
Should I respond by mentioning that our founding document (DofI) used the phrase “all men are created equal” as the basis to claim the right to freedom?
It’s one of my pet peeves: claiming to respect and follow a fundamental document (Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Christian Bible, whatever) but then saying the exact opposite of what’s in the damned text.
Isn’t the target audience of a store called “Forever 21” aging women who are insecure about their vanishing youth? Well Rand managed to get a lover 25 years her junior. You go girl! Unfortunately by definition, the guy was really into Ayn Rand.
Actually, the target consumers of Forever 21 are teenagers/young women who are fashion-savvy but without the financial resources to buy anything better. I realize you were doing it to make a joke, but there’s something that makes me uncomfortable with your comment’s phrasing. Rand was a pseudo-intellectual, sure, but trying for intellectualism isn’t like trying for a Hollywood career. It seems pretty unnecessary to bring up women’s age with that tone (especially given that no one who actually leaves the house thinks that the brand name Forever 21 actually implies anything about age).
I confess to not knowing anything about the store, but why else name it “Forever 21” unless you are claiming that your clothes will make you look 21, you know, forever? But then clothing store marketing doesn’t make a lot of sense. Abercrombie & Fitch used to be a seller of camping/fishing clothing and gear similar to L.L. Bean. It went bankrupt and somebody bought the name – I have no idea what the current store has to do with the name.
