A Repost For Opening Day: Fifty Ways to Leave The Looters

Posted by Eudaimonia 9 years, 7 months ago to Philosophy
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A Papa Possum piece that was written specifically for The Gulch and The Gulchers
Reposted for Opening Day

Something to hum while waiting for the movie to start.


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Fifty Ways to Leave the Looters

A song parody to the tune of
“Fifty Ways to Leave your Lover” by Paul Simon
and with the characters of
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand

The problem that's with the world is this philosophy:
to each one their need and from each their ability.
And since calls for sacrifice mean life in slavery,
there must be fifty ways to leave the Looters.

The Pull Aristocracy's Ruling Class attitude:
Producers are serfs and Looters are wisdom imbued.
And since “utopia” is life in chains ballyhooed,
there must be fifty ways to leave the Looters,
fifty ways to leave the Looters.

Teach the method that's true, Hugh.
No motor on, John.
Pose as a mountebank, Frank.
And shrug yourself free.
Hoist pirate flag, Rag.
Free the plunder that they bag.
A lesson here for me
to shrug myself free.

Finance the Gulch and Strike, Mike.
Rest ev'ry pitch, Rich.
Torch your fields to hell, El.
And shrug yourself free.
Walk off the track, Mac.
Take your mind and don't look back.
A lesson here for me
to shrug myself free.

The Looters will force their change regardless of the pain,
and ev'ry time they fail means only that they'll try again.
So don't ask “Who is John Galt?”, instead try to ascertain
one of the fifty ways.

And so now, by your life and love of it, think on the plight:
on what the Looters push and what you know is wrong and right.
Then shrug off for The Gulch 'fore those Looters turn out the light,
there must be fifty ways to leave the Looters,
fifty ways to leave the Looters.

Teach the method that's true, Hugh.
No motor on, John.
Pose as a mountebank, Frank.
And shrug yourself free.
Hoist pirate flag, Rag.
Free the plunder that they bag.
A lesson here for me
to shrug myself free.

Finance the Gulch and Strike, Mike.
Rest ev'ry pitch, Rich.
Torch your fields to hell, El.
And shrug yourself free.
Walk off the track, Mac.
Take your mind and don't look back.
A lesson here for me
to shrug myself free.

Fifty Ways to Leave the Looters © 2014 Papa Possum

Hear the audio stream here: http://papapossum.blogspot.com/2014/01/f...


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  • Posted by $ jdg 9 years, 7 months ago
    Funny, but this parody is not as satisfying as the original song, because it leaves the important question unanswered -- where to go?

    Unlike the characters in the book, most of us will never have the ability to crawl in a hole somewhere and go unnoticed. Much less stay that way for as long as John Galt did.
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  • Posted by term2 9 years, 7 months ago
    A movie is a distillation of a larger work such as a book. But it can concentrate thoughts into things that can be easily remembered. From Francisco in part I, I took away forever the idea that it IS a war, and we HAVE TO TAKE SIDES. Also, when Orren Boyle was talking about the success of the John Galt line- he said that "their success gives us the tools to take them down (paraphrased)". I think of that every time the government takes tax or fee money from me. Its money I made that they are taking for themselves and using it to make me poorer and take me down with regulations. I knew these things abstractly, but the film made them concrete
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