I'm very happy to have landed in the Gulch...I first read Atlas Shrugged after graduating from college and looking for a job. I read it in a week and treated the reading like it was my job; that was in 1987. I have read it 2 other times since and have extensive notes I often review. I have read almost all of her work: even a biography on her. I don't worship her or any man or woman for that matter. I liked her ideas. I would not call myself a Trumper but I did like many of his ideas. It was never about him but about reducing the over arching bureaucratic reach of the "ruling class". It was about taking this country back from the growing number of parasites that use the verbiage of fair share and equality. It should be about creating a system the give everyone the equal opportunity to build, create and compete. I've been a life long Republican but the majority of them are losers...and have been.

I came across the site after thinking I could/should leave the US. Ayn Rand thought the US was bad in the '50's but it was nothing compared to the current environment. But, there is no place to go. This triggered my thought of Mulligan's Valley. Of course, I can't escape to a place in my head but I need to be around like minded thinkers.

As we start 2021, my thinking and actions are really going to evolve. I despise media, Hollywood, et. alia. I have quit watching sports entirely, the news, and in TV general. The music and culture is reaching toward the lowest denominator and "they" are happy about it or at best ignorant about it. I get my news from the sources and do my own analysis. I vote with my wallet. While the church is a contradiction to pure "Randites", I have a very different and liberating view but even my church has lost its vision and is soulless. It

I'm very sober about this country (USA) and realizing those principles mostly reside in the heads of a few and the external feedback is very limited and diminishing. I will be operating with objective detachment in a renewed vigor. Again, I'm not a Rand sycophant. While her philosophy resonates with our founding values, I'm not sure she would propose self sacrifice to create and build a nation like the US.

The patriots & founding father's gave much of themselves for not only their own personal gain/selfishness but for future generations. They planted seeds for shade trees they would never sit under. I believed in this but now I see such thinking as futile in the current environment. I was part of this business group that was trying to grow our state GDP. We have a lot good natural and people resources (PA) but even this group got infected with bureaucratic mush, woke policies and silly feel good crap initiatives. This encapsulates it all; focus was on government engagement instead of with business minded people and real thinking academics (the maybe 2 handfuls that still exist countrywide).

Maybe I should have always but I am steadfastly looking at things in a cold steel objective manner and to continue to strive to improve my craft and deliver value. Since it is in investing, there was always this crutch of a feeling that had maybe a tinge of patriotic good feeling and trust in the US system and markets. I can't yet describe my thinking evolution but there was always a level of comfort with our business system and markets but my level of trust/belief is diminishing. You always need a certain level of trust. There is even trust among thieves otherwise you have complete anarchy.

My slight glimmer of hope is that CA will be the first to reach bottom and thus maybe they will be the first to revamp and renew in those ideas that made this country great; a place where every man or woman can selfishly pursue and build a life on creating or building things of value. Of being paid for the value they bring.

At 56 I still have many many things I want to accomplish and worry the headwinds of socialism will thwart my effort. The bottom line is it just feels plain lonely.