For those of you who don't get the reference, John Galt is the copper-haired, white-boy protagonist in Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. Galt leads a revolutionary movement in which all the top leaders of the banks and corporations forsake their corporate jets and perks to work in diners or as subway repair guys. No they weren't fired by Galt. Rather, Galt urged them to go on strike and withdraw their expertise from an increasingly socialist world. Deprived of the genius of their genius, the world economy collapses. Another remarkable feature of Atlas Shrugs's world is that despite being set in some unspecified late 20th Century America, there are almost no airplanes, only a vibrant and profitable rail system which is run, in all but name, by a 35-year-old blonde woman.Some people are laughing at wingnuts who are ‘going Galt’ by signing up for Medicare early. Me, I think it’s wonderful that the right is discovering the joys of solidaristic (well, sort of) strike action. So much so that I’m asking readers to encourage the leaders of this movement (Facebook group1 – I hope but don’t know whether this link will work for everyone) to take the obvious next step.
The ‘Go Galt, Go!’ Manifesto
We proudly salute “Dr. Helen,” Glenn Reynolds, and Michelle Malkin, for identifying the only possible response to Barack Obama’s victory – ‘going Galt.’ By withdrawing their creative and intellectual achievements from the economy and stopping tipping waitstaff, the schmibertarian right can surely bring the parasites and Democrats to their knees. We look forward to these three thought leaders striking the obvious first blow, by refusing to blog for the ungrateful masses and withdrawing to a secret compound until the world capitulates to their demands! Only a universal wingnut blogging strike can bring the moochers to their senses. John Galt lives!
1 We also have a Crooked Timber group by the way.