This may not be your cup of tea, but if you're willing, I'd appreciate you taking the time to read this.
“Let me give you a tip on a clue to men’s characters: the man who damns money has obtained it dishonorably; the man who respects it has earned it.” Francisco D’Anconia
As a much younger man, I completely missed this statement. I can find no reason for that omission in memory other than to say: my youth hadn’t experienced enough to understand how profound that statement is. Now, as a father to five, who, in the not too distant future, will experience that which I’ve referred through their entire childhoods as “the real world,” I find Francisco’s words carry more meaning, more truth than my days preceding fatherhood could ever hope to fathom.
Two sides fight for supremacy over the currency of a nation – no, that’s not right exactly; two sides fight for the value of currency. Not for the values printed or stamped to the paper and metal, but to the men and women who seek to gain it, the means to which they seek to acquire it, and their reasons for doing so.
The men of the mind believe that money is theirs to earn and to enjoy. The “looters” as Ms. Rand labeled them believe that money exists only as means of destruction of society, they just refuse to acknowledge that they understand their beliefs. To them, money is a barrier that separates good from evil. Evil are the men who seek to gain wealth from their accomplishments. The good are those who continually give theirs away for the benefit of a society whose needs outweigh those of the earner.
Dagny experiences a moment in her teen age years that defines, to her, the true purpose of wealth. Her mother hosts this lavish, formal affair for her. Being a true child of Nathaniel Taggart, she at an early age comprehends the concept of hard work and dedication to one’s trade. She always knew she was proper heir to Taggart Transcontinental, and she would operate and manage it effectively and successfully. Her party was something she hoped to enjoy, only to find that those in attendance never and would never understand the purpose of an occasion such as hers. Hank Rearden and Dagny spoke to this moment later when Hank finally understood the purpose of his wealth: Enjoyment. Dagny, at the party her mother had thrown, couldn’t enjoy hers when the world around her flaunted their wealth for the purpose of making an impression to those around them, while Hank couldn’t enjoy his due to the people around him constantly punishing him for having it. Through his relationship with Dagny, Hank eventually learns how to enjoy his wealth through their shared morality. He bought her gifts for his pleasure, not for hers. This is an important step Hank takes before he dies later in the book, at least his ego does. She admired the spirit of a man who asked for nothing from anyone and demanded the same in return. He loved a woman who exacted those very principles upon him.
When I think to Ellis Wyatt’s home in Colorado, the mental image I have is of a house warm and inviting. I see a living room that speaks to the character of its owner. A couch that is beautiful and impressive framed by two sturdy, handmade end tables built of mahogany to last generations. Impressive, yet understated. Expensive, but not pretentious. The overall feeling I would get walking through Wyatt’s residence is, “This is someone’s home.” Every piece of furniture, every fixture in place because its owner wanted it and chose it, not to impress his peers, but because the piece impressed him, thereby becoming an extension of him. His personality on display for those who entered his home to witness.
On the other hand, if one were to picture James Taggart or Wesley Mouch’s homes they would find the exact opposite in place when they entered. Everything would be beautiful, but for all the wrong reasons. Furnishings would be there for the purposes of being there. They would have been picked for the price on the tag, rather than the value placed upon them by their owner. They would be bragged about for their value while not being valued in the least. The houses would be domiciles full of all the finer things money could buy, comforts purchased under the ruse of hospitality, but fooling no one into believing they were welcome inside. James and Wesley would have their homes decorated by someone else. The reasons for this are two: because they had the money to afford it and because they really didn’t care. They were more interested in keeping up appearances and out doing the company they kept around them.
Imagine Hank Reardon and James Taggart behind their desks in suits and ties. Both suits tailored by the same individual, in fact, alike in all respects. It would be easy for me to know which man was the better of the two. I would know because each would wear their suit differently. Hank would be at home in his. He wouldn’t constantly check his appearance to assure his tie was straight, his lapels flat. James, on the other hand, would. His reasons for doing so tie directly to my train of logic: James and his friends, very simply put, just do not get it.
Ms. Rand leads her readers on path of villainy and corruption perpetrated by fools who pretend not to know what they are doing. I completely disagree. They don’t know. They’ve been trained, by Ms. Rand’s own admission, to not have to know. Centuries of human civilization have conditioned these men and women of the United States of America to have a sense of entitlement and have been assured that’s it proper. “If I want or need it, then I should have it.” The true villain of Atlas Shrugged, James Taggart, adds validity to my belief. He is the embodiment of all that is wrong with the community first mentality. He helps plan the destruction of society and is the first to hold his hand out when he suffers for it, citing his need. At the end of the novel while in the process of attempting to murder John Galt, Taggart only then comprehends what he is, and it destroys him. Just as Hank’s ego dies with the riot at his mills, James’ ego dies with his sudden self- awareness. What happens to James goes unnoticed by the others in the room, save Galt. They don’t know what Taggart discovered and just assume he has finally broken down. They carry James out of the room not understanding why John Galt refuses to save them and why the men of the mind deserted them, but I do:
John Galt and all his strikers get it.
Money is not the root of all evil. Money is paper and metal. It’s a check backed by gold, rather than an account at a bank. Man’s attitude is what determines money’s true value. In other words, look to the examples I’ve given, men who respect money choose to earn every dime they touch and spend it for the benefit of enjoying that which they earned. They ask nothing in return, but to respect what they value above all else, freedom; freedom to exist as the people who achieve and create for the rest of humanity, and to be left alone to do so. Where the evil lies, comes from those, as D’Anconia states, who don’t respect money. It’s not really the money they don’t respect, it’s the effort, knowledge, dedication, and intelligence needed to earn it. Finally, let me add this: those people who demand something for nothing, those who have expectations for some sense of entitlement due to need or just plain want, those who have chosen to live by this moral code, have respect for nothing at all. Not money, not their brothers’ lives, and most especially not their own.
