John Galt was a Scots writer of the early 1800s who gave us the word 'Utilitarian'. Though he was scornful of those who would forgo their traditions to become the same. See here, for instance (his main work):
Not going to assess Mark Ames "story" about Rand. Odd but I've read many biographies and stories about Rand without single reference to "her notebooks." or anything about Danny Renahan or the Little Street. One would think that a controversial author like Rand would have this exposed and analyzed by many other researchers.
She was University educated in Russia and did not come here until 1926 or so at age 21. This idea of her being a full blow sociopath has a taint of political smear. In any event until someone with a bit of independence fleshes out these assessments and assumptions I will stick to the mainstream profiles regarding Ms Rand.
Her so called enthrallment, without much evidence of her taking and "action," can be attributed to many things from her state of mind to her curiosity about the motivations of individuals like Hickman. FBI profilers conduct obsessive studies and research about serial killers for many legitimate reasons without them being sociopaths. Some even "admire" these monsters for their abilities to function while living with the demons in their minds.
Funny how the writings of the Marquis de Sade are referred to as imagined "libertine sexuality" by an author with a good heart but he is not castigated as a sociopath or a horrid person by many biographers. As I said I will await others assessment of Rand and her driving forces before I discount her writings.
"Ayn Rand did not admire the murderer William Hickman. On the contrary, she called him "a degenerate" and a "ruthless monster."
"The case (Hickman) showed me how society can wreck an exceptional being, and then murder him for being the wreck that it itself has created. This will be the story of the boy in my book.┬╗ (p. 38)
Who is John Galt.
John Galt was a Scots writer of the early 1800s who gave us the word 'Utilitarian'. Though he was scornful of those who would forgo their traditions to become the same. See here, for instance (his main work):
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annals_of_the_Parish
His writing is filled with nuance & sympathy for the general human condition. Why Ayn Rand picked his name is a mystery to me.
Not going to assess Mark Ames "story" about Rand. Odd but I've read many biographies and stories about Rand without single reference to "her notebooks." or anything about Danny Renahan or the Little Street. One would think that a controversial author like Rand would have this exposed and analyzed by many other researchers.
She was University educated in Russia and did not come here until 1926 or so at age 21. This idea of her being a full blow sociopath has a taint of political smear. In any event until someone with a bit of independence fleshes out these assessments and assumptions I will stick to the mainstream profiles regarding Ms Rand.
Her so called enthrallment, without much evidence of her taking and "action," can be attributed to many things from her state of mind to her curiosity about the motivations of individuals like Hickman. FBI profilers conduct obsessive studies and research about serial killers for many legitimate reasons without them being sociopaths. Some even "admire" these monsters for their abilities to function while living with the demons in their minds.
Funny how the writings of the Marquis de Sade are referred to as imagined "libertine sexuality" by an author with a good heart but he is not castigated as a sociopath or a horrid person by many biographers. As I said I will await others assessment of Rand and her driving forces before I discount her writings.
"Ayn Rand did not admire the murderer William Hickman. On the contrary, she called him "a degenerate" and a "ruthless monster."
"The case (Hickman) showed me how society can wreck an exceptional being, and then murder him for being the wreck that it itself has created. This will be the story of the boy in my book.┬╗ (p. 38)
https://aynrand.no/did-ayn-rand-admire-killer-william-hickman/