I always smile when people call the philosophy of Ayn Rand “objective” or “rational.” The only objective political assumption would be that the earth belongs somewhat equally to all of us. To see nature as your own property and human beings a your competitors in a noble rat race is not a result of reason but of desire. And once anyone believes his or her selfish wants are the result of pure reason, communication becomes very difficult. Any talk of human solidarity is instantly dismissed as a precursor to Stalinism. Lacking thoughts of their own, some “Objectivists” throw the phrases of Rand at you like refrigerator magnets. And how can you change the mind of a woman this long dead?