The Ayn Rand Institute Accepts Federal Aid - PPP

The invisible hand of the market place is now reaching into the average worker's pocket.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-ppp-ayn-rand-idUSKBN248026

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/a33233404/ppp-ayn-rand-institute/

 

If I don't have time to watch the video, can I just start running around in circles with my arms flailing?

 

Giggling.

From the article:
“We will take it unapologetically, because the principle here is: justice,” they wrote, adding that “the government has no wealth of its own…. It can only redistribute the wealth of others.”

Quickly followed up by:
In a 1962 essay, Rand wrote of seventeenth century French businessmen: “They knew that government ‘help’ to business is just as disastrous as government persecution, and that the only way a government can be of service to national prosperity is by keeping its hands off.”

 

So... still confused.

Was the idea that the PPP was only intended to fund business that were failing, small, poor? The intent of the PPP was to retain jobs at all businesses across the spectrum.

As is typical with the class warfare crowd, ones wealth, or the wealth of a company is the determining factor of weather they should be afforded a stimulus in the middle of a pandemic.

Once again, the ones crying the loudest are the truely greedy folk. While ironically screaming that everybody else is greedy and for that reason they should turn over their money.

 

I think this case specifically is about how the institute that pushes for the ultimate in free market ideology violated that ideology by taking a Govt bailout.

 

Your confusion is understandable. I find it confusing that a group who is strongly and vocally - and at their very core - against government hand outs is happily accepting one.

 

I wonder how many jobs it saved at the pedophile Catholic church? They got by far the largest sum...

 

Isn’t that the entire basis of Ayn Rands career?

 

Is it a free market when government says you can't operate?

Answer. No.

 

I'm nearly completely against government handouts to. Never accepted them in my life. I took the PPP.

First of all, 60% must go to payroll, with the same number of employees that they had before the pandemic. Meaning, the company is using majority of the money to pay others, not themselves. This included utilities and rent. They aren't putting it in their pocket.

Secondly. If somebody tells me I am disallowed from earning an income; that I can't participate in the free market, and instead, they will pay my bills... is that really a hand out?

My company got $75,000.

My company is down $250,000 in revenue.

Yeah. Great handout.

 

That never stopped you and your ilk from lambasting hungry folk who receive a couple hundred dollars-a-month in food stamps and welfare. Yeah, great handout, indeed.

 

Its Republican math.
If evil poor people get $250 a week to keep them from starving it is evil socialism!
If large corporations get $10MM to $1.3B in “aid” (even if they were not really impacted) it’s wonderful capitalism!

 

So, in one case you have people that are taking government money to pay their employees when the governemnt tells them they can't work, and comparing that to people who take government that won't work.

I'm not surprised you can't see the difference.

 

Has your company's business model been all about not taking govt handouts? If not - not the same thing at all.

 

The vast majority of people on federal and state assistance are handicapped, elderly or working households [1]. I guess it is easier to villainize those less fortunate than yourself and your $75k that was taken from the taxpayer.
You just received more than entire families will ever receive off of federal assistance because you were unable to follow the same advice so many cons give other to have six months worth of emergency savings.

Pathetic

 

I can't remember every i and t, but is there anything in the CARES Act that would make this wrong??? Or is the Ayn Rand Institute just an employing entity you don't like?

 

No, they give that advice to poor people who they are landlords too and who can barely afford to pay their exorbitant rents

 

Legally, no — the CARES act was a joke of a bill to enrich the already wealthy which is why you see entities like the Catholic Church getting $1.3B from it. Morally and ethically, that is a different scenario, especially coming from a group that lectures others on using governmental funds to improve their lives.

 

The dude says that capitalism has collapsed. But we don't have capitalism in the US, so that kind of falls flat.

 

Doesn't matter. Have enough savings to weather the storms. If an natural disaster struck that created the same lockdown conditions, and it wasn't the Govt who shut it down, but Nature, they would have still accepted the money because guess what, sometimes Govt is needed to help out when the market can't (for whatever reason, Govt imposed or otherwise).

Ayn Rand ideology is that the Govt is unnecessary and only gets in the way. Until they hand out money for getting in the way too much, then it's "sure, right into this pocket. Thanks".

 

So you're not one of the "savings reduces GDP" crowd?

 

Sorry man, thats absolute nonsense.

A free market, by definition, demands the free exchange of goods and services.

If the government quite literally prevents that exchange, its a not a free market. End of story.

I guarantee, if you were to ask every business if theybwould have rather of stayed open or accept the PPP, they would stay open. Business owners like myself have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Comparing that situation to a handout in which people get something for nothings, and aren't prevented to slef sustain, it isnt nearly the same thing.

 

It can if everyone does it and nobody spends anything. I don't believe in extremes.

Increasing the velocity of money in a down period is a good thing, because it increases GDP growth. But, too much also increases inflation.

In good times (which the US had preCovid) the focus should have been on savings and the slowing of the Velocity so as to build up a savings chest.

While a lot of Corps did so, most just took on massive debt instead (Corp debt will be the next '08 subprime meltdown').

Also, if a institute is going to model itself after Ayn Rand, then they should absolutely have set themself up to not need Govt no matter the situation. Ideologically speaking.

 

Sure it is. Your getting a Govt help.i don't begrudge it because its the logical and necessary thing to help your business. Just don't expect people not to call out your hypocrisy if your business is to attack the concept of the Govt and decry it's existence entirely.

Also there is no such thing as a "free market". They are all "managed markets" because every Country has a Govt.

 

the capitalist is a victim of a communist country attacking his country, the taxpayers are helping the job creator stay in business so that he may create more taxpayers.

he is not a traditional welfare recipient who takes handouts for nothing, fraudulently, nor a net recipient of the state.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welfare_queen