E19 - Conspiracies

A Socialist Reads Atlas Shrugged

This episode begins the close reading of Chapter 3. Jonathan sets up the discussion of the first scene with a reflection on conspiracy theories. They cite Ross Douthat's March 2, 2021, column "A Better Way to Think About Conspiracy Theories" published in The New York Times. Jonathan then explains Orren Boyle's motivations at the start of the conspiratorial meeting in this scene. Boyle's backstory activates tropes about wasteful government spending that plays favorites. On the topic of government criticism, Jonathan cites the book, The Fifth Risk, by Michael Lewis. Jonathan also mentions the Solyndra scandal and here is the Department of Energy's review of the context of the situation. This story by NPR in 2014 explains the profitability of the larger Department of Energy program. However, this story by Fox News in 2019 recaps the Solyndra episode and omits the contextual information about the program's profitability in order to increase skepticism about programs associated with the Green New Deal.
My five themes to explore in this podcast's close read of Atlas Shrugged are:

1. What is human nature?
2. Straw-man arguments and their impact on the world Ayn Rand creates.
3. Dagny Taggart as a true hero.
4. How empathy can be de-legitimized.
5. What is Capitalism and what is wrong with it?

Questions or comments? Email me at: [email protected]
Learn more about Jonathan Seyfried at their website, https://jonathanseyfried.art
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The intro/outro music was composed by John Sib.
The podcast theme image was created by Karina Bialys.

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