Category: The Atlasphere

All things Atlasphere can be found here, columns, podcasts, interesting anecdotes, and more.

ARI 2004 Internship Program

Posted on by Heather Wagenhals

The Ayn Rand Institute is accepting applications from undergraduates for their 2004 internship program. From the announcement:

ARI is currently accepting applications for paid (summer and one-year) internship positions. Full-time undergraduate students who are interested in the role of ideas in culture and history, who are seriously considering an academic career in the humanities, and who have excellent academic records should apply.
As an intern at ARI, you will be involved in a unique work/study program under the direction of ARI’s academic and administrative divisions at ARI’s offices in Irvine, California. Interns will study and attend classes on Objectivism in order to build a solid understanding of Ayn Rand’s philosophy. The study portion of the program will be tailored to meet the intern’s academic interests. The work portion of the program will involve providing general administrative assistance at the Institute, including research, typing, filing, answering phones, etc.

The application form is available in PDF format and must be postmarked by February 28, 2004.

Atlas Shrugged in This Week Mag

Posted on by Heather Wagenhals

Atlas Shrugged topped The Week Magazine‘s Dec 19 list of “Best Books,” as chosen by Chuck Klosterman, a senior writer at Spin Magazine. His mini-review:

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand (Signet, $9). People who are intellectual (but not necessarily smart) constantly insist that Rand?s philosophy is simplistic and flawed, and maybe it is; no philosophy is perfect. But she makes more sense than anyone else I?ve ever experienced. If you disagree with Atlas Shrugged, it basically means you disagree with the concept of ?being great.?

Heh. (Thanks to co_techie at LiveJournal for the tip. She also notes a significant reference to Atlas Shrugged in the Dec 30 episode of Judging Amy.)

WWW Creator to Be Knighted

Posted on by Heather Wagenhals

Remember using the Internet before the advent of the World Wide Web? If you do, you might appreciate this story from the Independent: Tim Berners-Lee, who developed the protocols for the World Wide Web, is named in the New Year’s Honours List for “services to the internet” and is to be knighted.
There’s no immediate financial benefit to a knighthood, as far as I know, nor is there any career path per se as a knight (Sir Tim lives and works in the USA anyway). But Berners-Lee is a British subject and the selection is still regarded by most as an honor, so I’m glad to see it happen.
From the Independent:

The system, which he developed in his spare time in 1991 while working as a researcher at the European particle research laboratory Cern, features billions of web pages used by hundreds of millions of people every day.
Crucially, Mr Berners-Lee gave his invention away rather than trying to patent or restrict its use, making it possible for the web to grow at a rate never seen. Without his creation, there would be no “www” computer addresses, and the internet might still be the exclusive domain of a handful of computer experts.

I’m not praising Berners-Lee, by the way, for giving away his invention. I’m praising him for having been creative enough to invent it in the first place (and in his “spare time”?). If, like me, you’ve used and enjoyed amazon.com, Yahoo!Groups, expedia.com, or blogging, you have Tim Berners-Lee to thank. He made the Internet easy to use.
Thanks, Sir Tim. Pleased to have you on this side of the pond.

Rand in NY Review of Books

Posted on by Chris Sciabarra

In keeping with my penchant for tracing Rand references, I came upon this little mention in the current New York Review of Books (15 January 2004).
In this issue, John Gregory Dunne reviews Natalie Wood: A Life by Gavin Lambert. [The full text of the review is available online only to subscribers.] He remarks that actress Natalie Wood had a part in the second movie directed by Irvin Pichel, Tomorrow is Forever. The producer of the film was Sam Wood, who, Dunne reminds us:

…is perhaps best remembered for relentlessly rooting out Communist influences in Hollywood films and writing, with Ayn Rand, a manifesto of filmmaking don’ts, including ‘Don’t Glorify Failure’; ‘Don’t Deify the Common Man’; ‘Don’t Smear the Free Enterprise System, Success, and Industrialists’.

That’s a reference to Rand’s Screen Guide for Americans, which appeared in the November 1947 issue of Plain Talk.

Screenwriter for Atlas Shrugged Movie

Posted on by Heather Wagenhals

Anyone interested in the latest attempt to create an Atlas Shrugged movie will enjoy reading Box Office Mojo’s interview with James V. Hart, who was hired earlier this year to write the script.
From the interview:

“I hated [Atlas Shrugged] in college,” the 56-year-old New Yorker admitted. “It was the peace and love era and the values of the time weren’t consistent with Ayn Rand’s philosophy. Years later, I read it again and it blew me away. I’ve read it four times in the last six months.”
What changed Hart’s mind?
“We’re on the threshold of what Ayn Rand predicted,” he noted. “Socialism has crept into everything and we’re penalizing the thinkers, the movers and shakers for being successful. In a way, the world that Ayn Rand created in Atlas Shrugged is the United States today.”

Continue reading “Screenwriter for Atlas Shrugged Movie”

Pro-Freedom Politicians

Posted on by Heather Wagenhals

Fox News has posted an article called “Libertarian Heroes of 2003” that profiles politicians who took a stand this past year to “limit the size of government, defend our civil liberties, or otherwise uphold the freedom of Americans at the expense of the state.”
A couple excerpts:

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin
Businessman Nagin ran for mayor as his first foray into politics. It shows — and I mean that in a good way. Immediately upon taking office, Nagin took a scouring pad to Crescent City corruption. He raided the Taxicab Bureau, arresting some 80 employees — including his own cousin — and had the bureau?s director marched out of City Hall in handcuffs. When the city director in charge of the bureau called a press conference to criticize the raid, Nagin fired her on camera, and later had her arrested, too. Since then, several other city officials have been fired, indicted, and convicted for fraud, bribe-taking and corruption.

And:

Texas Rep. Ron Paul
Rep. Paul not only makes this list, he is this list. He?s the most consistent defender of freedom elected to federal office in about 200 years. For Rep. Paul, such devotion to principle is easy. When a bill comes up for a vote, he merely asks himself whether or not the U.S. Constitution authorizes Congress to do what the bill asks. If the answer is ?no,? — and it almost always is — he votes no. He is reliably the ?1? when the House passes a bill 434-1. The Washington Post once dubbed him ?Congressman ?No.??

Movie: Something's Gotta Give

Posted on by Heather Wagenhals

The new romantic comedy Something’s Gotta Give (starring Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton) features a theme emphasizing the importance of honesty, intimacy, and a commitment to personal growth. (It’s also incredibly funny.) The writing, acting, and production are all first rate.
My wife and I saw it on Christmas eve and enjoyed it immensely. For more information about the movie, watch the trailer or read Roger Ebert’s review.

New Greenspan Bio

Posted on by Heather Wagenhals

Following up on the lead from Ayn Rand at Salon.com… Below is an excerpt from TownHall.com’s review of Jerome Tucille’s new (2002) Greenspan biography, Alan Shrugged:

Alan Shrugged provides a thoughtful, penetrating examination of the Fed chairman, from the early years through late 2001. Written by investment executive and biographical best-selling author Jerome Tuccille, and accuracy-checked by Greenspan through his press secretary, Alan Shrugged is likely as close as a lay person will come to understanding Alan Greenspan and the power he wields as Fed chairman. Although written by a fellow financier, there’s little jargon to confuse a lay reader; Tuccille excels at cutting through layers of complexity to present the heart of the matter, be it the workings of the Federal Reserve or an individual.

From the outset, Tuccille deftly evokes images — of the Greenspans’ home environment, Alan’s college years, his early jobs — that enable immersion in the cultures and events that influenced the young Alan. While not a novelized biography, the effect is similar to one, and it’s very effective at keeping a reader’s interest. Of course, the Ayn Rand years are given their due — thankfully, without the tawdry tabloid elements that have found their way into other biographies of Rand’s intimates. Tuccille instead focuses on how Rand influenced Greenspan, and how he influenced her as well, providing a rare, balanced look into Rand’s inner circle and its workings.

Sounds like a book that would interest many Ayn Rand fans.

Ayn Rand at Salon.com

Posted on by Heather Wagenhals

Back in March, on the anniversary of Ayn Rand’s death, Salon.com’s Steve King posted a fair-minded summary of Ayn Rand’s work in their “Literary Daybook” feature. Included is the following description of Rand’s first week in the United States:

Whatever might be said about Rand’s controversial philosophy, difficult personality and long books, her life story is a remarkable one. In 1926, 21-year-old Alice Rosenbaum fled Communist Russia for Hollywood America, determined to be a writer. She arrived there six months later as Ayn Rand — “Ayn” for the nice sound (rhymes with “mine,” one biographer says without irony), “Rand” for the Remington Rand typewriter she brought with her. On her second day, she got a lift and a job from Cecil B. DeMille; in her first week, she met the man to whom she would be married for 50 years.

The article also notes that “A recent book about Greenspan by Jerome Tuccille is titled Alan Shrugged.” I had not heard of this book before, but more information is available from Amazon.com and the book was reviewed at TownHall.com.

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