It came as no surprise that the Galt's Gulch thing in Chile came crashing down under accusations of fraud, zoning issues, unpaid bills and finally flight into the night. These day's the world is too small and the greed too large for a physical Galt's Gulch to survive.
Libertarian Utopia styled after Ayn Rand Book Falls Apart
I believe many people take the concept of what Rand was writing about too far anyway. It was never meant to be a physical location as much as it was intended to be a state of mind. While I certainly have no respect for some of the lesser moral messages that were included in "Atlas Shrugged" I believe Rand was correct in many ways. She could see the monster forming but had no clue what appendages it would attach to itself before the end.
I used to say there was no Galt's Gulch but as time goes by I have amended my thoughts on the issue and have come to believe that Galt's Gulch is everywhere and it is growing. It is at the edges of society. It is in scattered lot's, homesteads and areas forgotten about as being too remote. It exists in small pockets not large enough to attract the attention of the looters and social engineers. Too far off the beaten path to even be worth leveling yet more taxes and government theft onto.
As the economics of the Looters fail the area of Galt's Gulch grows. With each great leader, inventor, academic or what have you that is denied his or her true destiny so the social engineers can use those resources in yet another emotion-based failure of a scheme, Galt's Gulch grows. With every intellectual or power player who gives up fighting against biased ever changing rules and disappears into obscurity to live a simple life. Galt's Gulch grows. With every company that goes under, every institution twisted until it is no longer recognizable, every natural law bent or twisted or ignored for the "common good", Galt's Gulch grows. When new property taxes are leveled to pay for yet more government pensions, graft and corruption, people vote with their feet and, guess what, Galt's Gulch grows.
Galt's Gulch was never meant to be a valley filled with vineyards, factories or science fiction power motors and shield generators. It is nothing more than the abstract reflection of the waste that is the worlds best and brightest having been marginalized and misused then cast aside for social engineering ideologies. Galt's Gulch lives inside the intellect, knowledge, skill and experience of those who have been sacrificed for the looters feelings, emotions and greed.
And it grows everyday.
Keep Prepping Everyone!!!
PP - have you seen this article by Jeff Berwick? he was one of the originals involved in this whole nightmare and he has put up a very detailed article of how the whole thing went down:
ReplyDeletehttp://dollarvigilante.com/blog/2014/8/27/the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly-on-galts-gulch-chile.html
i completely agree with you that Galt's Gulch is an idea, not a physical place, and i also agree that it is growing. look at all of the people in the last several years who have left suburbia and moved to more rural areas - and a large part of that group are very skilled and highly intelligent people. Galt's Gulch is growing...and will continue. good post, buddy!
your friend,
kymber
Kymber - Ya I had read that. I been kinda looking into it off and on and seeing how it was failing.
DeleteYes the way they have things these days more and more competent people will be pushed out or leave voluntarily.
Thanks you.
I believe that Galt's Gulch is located with each one of us who are like minded and prep.
ReplyDeleteRob - Certainly although the brain drain can happen to plenty who do not necessarily prep. They just can feel something is wrong.
DeleteI think you are right Preppy. It is not one physical location - nor could it be in this age. It is at the corner's and fringes of society, hiding - sometimes out of view, sometimes in plain sight. And it is a much of a philosophy as it is a physical location. And with you, I do believe that it is growing.
ReplyDeleteTB - Yes it is growing and I think it is also gaining some momentum too.
DeletePP,
ReplyDeleteGalt's Gulch is growing. It is the way we see the world, our government, the economy, and ourselves.
Great post! And by the way, I went to see Part 3.....you're right the actors all changed, and I was a bit disappointed in the ending. I won't mention what happens just in you or your blogger friends want to see it. We had to travel 1 hour out of our way to see the movie, apparently this movie is playing in limited theaters.
Sandy - I will more than likely wait for it to come out on video as no where around here will play it anyway. I have heard some bad reviews of it and I was so disappointed in the second movie anyway it's not something I am even looking forward to honestly. The book says it all but I know if it had been done better the movie may have resonated with those who don't maybe read like the rest of us do.
Delete