Rand, Ryan and the Rich Young Ruler

I just got off the phone with our oldest son, the singer/songwriter who lives in Pittsburgh. He and I got into one of our father-son discussions on some of the differences between Jesus' message on economics and that embedded in most of the current national budget debates. We both noted the fact that, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer's website, politicians like Wisconsin Representative Paul Ryan, who wrote the Republican Party's budget proposal, are avid admirers of the late philosopher Ayn Rand. Ryan says she is "the reason he entered politics" and has asked his staff to read her amoral (and unashamedly godless) 1200-page novel, Atlas Shrugged. Many members of the Tea Party are also great fans of her writing.

I then emailed Brad a copy of a letter to the Daily News-Record I had submitted to the paper eleven days ago (and which as of yet had not been published):

Editor, DNR:

I commend you for doing an editorial critique on the renewed attention being given to the writings of Ayn Rand. 

Gary Moore, in an article in the September, 2010, issue of Christianity Today, quotes economist Milton Friedman, one of Rand's disciples, as supporting her kind of amoral philosophy that the "only social responsibility of a business is to make money." 

Moore also cites the following from the book "Goddess of the Market: Ayn Rand and the American Right," by Jennifer Burns,  "Whereas traditional conservatism emphasized duties, responsibilities, and social interconnectedness, at the core of the right wing ideology Rand spearheaded was a rejection of moral obligations to others."  

Not surprisingly, according to Moore, by the time she died she had "alienated most of her friends and was deeply depressed."

Harvey Yoder

[4/18/11 P. S. In response to a call to the DNR, they said the above letter had mistakenly remained in their "unconfirmed" category and that they will print it this week, in a slightly revised version, at my request.]

Brad then emailed me the following lyrics of a song he'd written earlier this month:

a rich young man came to ask a question,
he didn’t get the answer he was expecting,
  so he went away sad, yeah, he went away sad..
he thought he knew what the law required,
but love was the law and a burning fire,
  he went away sad, yeah, he went away sad..
    you and me, we’re hanging on by a thread,
    there’s nothing that we can’t forget,
    we’re just trying to fill the hole,
    you and me, we’re waiting for our bird to sing,
    still acting like we pull the strings,
    as if we were in control..

I sought love, ‘cause I thought I’d earned it,
the one that I loved did not return it,
  so I went away sad, yeah, I went away sad..
love sought me, I was quick to dodge it,
the last thing I needed was another project,
  she went away sad, yeah, she went away sad..
    you and me, we’re waiting for our bird to sing,
    still acting like we pull the strings,
    as if we were in control..
    you and me, we’re hanging on by a thread,
    there’s nothing that we can’t forget,
    just trying to fill the hole..
      we take the bait so easily,
      the soft escape, the shiny scheme,
      as I live and as I breathe
      I need you to unsettle me..

I asked God for a rhyme or reason,
I fell to my knees and I tried to please him,
  but I went away sad, yeah, I went away sad..
I heard a quiet voice on a crowded corner,
but we all hurried past, trying to ignore her,
  we went away sad, I think we went away sad..
    you and me, there’s nothing that we can’t forget,
    we’re hanging on by a thread, just trying to fill the hole,
    you and me, we’re acting like we pull the strings,
    still waiting for our bird to sing,
     as if we were in control...

                                                                                                    -all rights reserved 

P. S. 2 Daryl Fries posted the following on dnronline April 20, 2011:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2uHSv1asFvU    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6jkQKAv13A During her lifetime, Rand advocated “the virtue of selfishness,” declared altruism to be “evil,” opposed Medicare and all forms of government support for the middle-class and the poor, and condemned Christianity for advocating love and compassion for the less fortunate:    Rand also dismissed the feminist movement as a “false” and “phony” issue, said a female commander in chief would be “unspeakable,” characterized Arabs as “almost totally primitive savages,” and called government efforts to aid the handicapped and educate “subnormal children” an attempt to “bring everybody to the level of the handicapped.”

In Defense of Good Fences

We all agree children need rules. "Wait for your turn." "Don’t accept candy from strangers." "Eat your vegetables before dessert." "Always tell the truth."

But do grownups need similar Do’s and Don’ts in the area of maintaining faithful relationships?

Some believe we shouldn’t need to focus so much on boundaries as to learn to live from our inner center, our core values. Cultivate a healthy relationship with God--and with a mature dating or marriage partner--and you won’t find yourself straying. It’s a little like providing cattle with good water and pasture, they say, then not having to worry so much about maintaining strong fences.

There’s certainly some truth to that, but on our farm I remember livestock needing both good food and good fences. Even with lots of green grass on their side of the fence line, our herd would sometimes break into an adjoining field for a feast of even greener looking corn or clover. The results could be ruinous both to the health of the cattle and the condition of the crop.

Sadly, without good boundaries, even some of our church’s trusted teachers and pastors have had affairs with people in their trust. And more and more younger and older folks alike seem to be ignoring other time-honored fences, are hooking up and breaking up in increased numbers. Results of these crossed boundary lines often include not only severe heartbreaks, but career disasters, financial headaches, fractured families and emotionally distressed children.

Experience tells us an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure--or a ton of regret. Thus the Calvary Community Church, a large African-American congregation in Hampton, Virginia, has come up with “Ten Commitments to Righteousness” for its young people. These include unapologetic boundary markers like “You shall not be sexually active until marriage,” according to Glen Guyton, Calvary’s youth pastor.

But defining clear ethical standards like that these days has some folks seeing only legalism. In order to show their open mindedness, they are prone to not only want to move boundaries, but to simply remove them and leave all moral choices up to the individual.

To me, Genesis-old, congregationally supported fences around sex and marriage are at least as necessary as rules governing driving. Should I consider it a violation of my freedom when I’m bound by dozens of common sense traffic laws every day?

For example, I don’t arbitrarily choose which side of the road I drive on. I also obey the stop sign at the end of Hamlet Drive every time I enter the highway. As I head into town, I’m expected to slow my speed to 45 mph, then 35, for everyone’s protection. I’m required to wait at several traffic lights before crossing an intersection. And all the while I display a state license plate on my vehicle, and I carry a driver’s license in my wallet. Just a piece of paper, some say, but one that serves a legitimate and useful purpose.

Somehow I fail to find these rules restrictive. Good boundaries are not road blocks, but are like safeguards and guard rails that give help me get from point A to point B with less hassle--and a lot less risk of having a wreck.

I know a bad one of those could really rob me of my freedom.

caveat emptor

"Let the buyer beware" is a bit of wisdom I've always thought I practiced reasonably well.

But I also have a weakness for bargains--as in the case of a recent coupon I got for a $19.99 oil change, complete with a free 19-point vehicle inspection.

Somehow, saving $15 sounded so good I forgot to apply another wise saying, "If anything sounds too good to be true, it probably is."

Anyway, soon after leaving my Nissan pickup at an unnamed tire dealers, I got a call from the pleasant and very nice person I had just spoken to. 

"Mr. Yoder, did you realize your vehicle is due for an inspection?" (I had failed to notice) "We could do that for you for a standard $16. And by the way, your left front wheel has worn bearings, and the tire is wearing unevenly. We'd be glad to fix that up for you, too, get your vehicle realigned, and you'll be good to go until your next inspection."

I was having a busy afternoon, and while I hesitated at first (I had just had an alignment done), I was assured that the work on the wheel bearings was necessary and that the alignment was indeed required. So, trusting and ignorant as I was, I agreed, figuring it would be convenient to just get all this out of the way.

Later that afternoon I had serious second thoughts about my choice, wishing I would have waited and gotten a second opinion. But by then I figured it was too late to change my mind.

Do I ever wish I had. That evening I was hit with a serious case of sticker shock and buyer's remorse when I was handed a bill totaling over $300.

I asked for my old wheel bearings back, just to check them out, and when I inquired about why this required a realignment, I was told it was because the tie rod needs to be removed in such cases (which could make sense only to a mechanically challenged person like myself).

The next morning, I showed the bearings to a nearby mechanic, along with my bill.
Here's what I learned--the hard way, of course:

1. My left front tire wear was normal.

2. The wheel bearings showed no significant wear (also confirmed by a second mechanic I took them to).

3. It is not necessary to remove a tie rod on the front wheel of a two-wheel drive vehicle to replace wheel bearings.

4. Therefore no wheel alignment was necessary.

Needless to say, I registered a complaint with the overly helpful folks who did all this, and am waiting to hear what adjustment they are willing to make. Or whether I need to take my case to the Virginia State Inspection folks to enlist their help.

Meanwhile, I'm posting this embarrassing tale to warn others to exercise more care than I did, and I will P.S. an update on this post as soon as I know more.

A March 17 P.S.: The manager and the lead mechanic at the tire dealer spoke with me today, and while they still insist the wheel bearings needed to be replaced they conceded on the alignment issue, offered me a full refund for that ($115) plus a free rotation of my tires, which leaves me at least 90% satisfied. 
So, case closed, lesson learned.