Good use of quotes! Rand says it best!

The earlier original articles with good insights from Rob Tracinsky (also, Howard Roark was not based on Frank Lloyd Wright).

"Donald Trump Is an Ayn Rand Villain" April 12, 2016 http://tracinskiletter.com/2016/04/12...

"Everything Awful About the Trump Campaign in One Tweet" April 9, 2016 http://tracinskiletter.com/2016/04/09...

I really doubt that The Donald could show an architect
anything except chicken-scratching. . he's a deal artist,
not a builder. . an architect is an engineer plus a people-
space artist -- an ergonomicist, to beg for a word. . Donald
is neither, in my estimation as a mechanical engineer. -- j
.

I doubt he even watched the film. Most likely it went something like this in his mind.

Isn't Ayn Rand some ultra conservative philosopher? Ya I think she is, what did she write that I can comment on.

Search on web

Hey there was a movie of this book in the fifties that was kinda popular. Rourke is the hero, hay I am a hero. I think I can spin in a comparison to me in a speech, that will get the Rand people to like me.

I am surprised only that there was not a quote from him "those followers of Ayn Rand, there good people" in this as it seems like he says that about everyone and shortly there after says something that makes the same group bad.

I do not think he even watched the movie.

+5

taking a lady's home for what HE thought it was worth or destroying Scottish lands because HE thought it the best usage.

Thank you.

Thank you.

since he is unable to discuss at length or in detail the posted positions, I would say yes, I do believe he is totally clueless.

I didn't say the positions are not correct, just that it's not what he believes or understands. It is a total marketing ploy of saying what the people want to hear.

"Roark would refuse to make a deal with someone that had nothing of value to offer in return."

Trump makes deals that have nothing of value in return? Really? Disagree.

Good article - I too can see Gail Wynand as the character I would most associate with Trump. With a slight twist.

As an activist, in observing the Trump phenomena, I look at both "the Donald" and the movement, his followers. I know a number of those people, some of which even have principles (lol).

"the Donald" the man. The assessment of him as Wynand is close. But I see "the Donald" as Wynand in his advocacy for Roark after Cortlandt - trying to do the right thing (in part) by manipulating the mob he has created. "the Donald" does NOT have the intellectual capacity or inclination to understand issues or really get what he is fighting for. His "Make America Great Again" populism leads him to oppose illegal immigration, to fight against jobs going overseas (which he is wrong on, and for all the wrong reasons), to put America back to work, etc, anti-Obamacare (although we "HAVE TO care for the needy"). He is clueless as to the Constitution, market forces, freedom and liberty, and has a vague knowledge of our enemies... He is anti-PC because it is his nature, and for the affect it has on his followers. He knows the land mines NOT to touch- and "dances & prances" on many others.

He is led, in part, by the mob he created.

Trump the movement - I speak of what I believe (and hope) is the majority of his followers. They are followers because they want what he represents: taking on The Establishment, anti-immigration, being Politically INCorrect, proud of his wealth (ethics of how he acquired it appear murky), and, essentially, his as-mad-as-hell attitude. When legitimate questions are raised he pulls out "the lyin' media" or "lyin' Ted" and kills the argument and successfully becomes the Ducking Donald (a title he richly deserves). They like the hype they hear, and don't look too closely at the man they are following. The Emperor (wannabe) has no clothes.

Many moderates who populate the squishy middle do not see that "the Donald" is fooling them by being a populist "from the right", the same way Obama fooled many as a populist "from the left".

Critics have been demonized and hence are not valid in the "Trump minions world." The only hope to dislodge many would be if "the Donald" implodes...

"But the men who place money first go much beyond that. Personal luxury is a limited endeavor. What they want is ostentation: to show, to stun, to entertain, to impress others. They're second-handers."


Now THAT is a perfect description of Trump!

Do you REALLY believe that Trump has no idea what his stated positions on his website are? Hard to imagine how he's gotten this far if he's ignorant about what's on his own website, especially since its content could easily be cited by the mainstream media in its continuing efforts to discredit him.

I'll buy that! But only in Midas Mulligan Gold coins.

"Is Trump Howard Roark?"
Who the hell would ask such a question?
Even just to tear it apart.
Who would even think of such a question?

Anyone who knows who Howard Roark is wouldn't even have the passing thought.

The first thing that stands out is that Roark was an introvert who had the utmost contempt for anyone who seeks power. That alone is enough to destroy any comparison with Trump.

I agree. I was very impressed by his kids. I do think that the apple doesnt fall far from the tree, as they say.

Great idea. But I suspect the answer is a mixture of high school teachers and comic books.

he even says that he plays by the rules WE set. You dont get far in business using bankruptcy. That happens because you havent gotten that far in that endeavor, and that could be due to your screwup or the economy in general or some change in the customers' wants. Business is a gamble which in todays world requires investment before you can sell pretty much anything.

The greatest short line in Literature is "Howard Roark laughed". When you know who Roark is and the world In which he can laugh then you know the opposite is Trump. Imagine the young boy who talks to Roark over looking Monadnock and imagine Trump and you can see that Trump is a power lusting pragmatist.

He wouldn't have gotten as far in business IF he hadn't used bankruptcy codes, screwed contractors, cheated land owners etc etc.

Listen to what he means and has done NOT what he says,. (Which is predominately BS)

You REALLY believe he has any idea what his stated positions on his website are?
I have direct knowledge of his set up of the Trump U fiasco and can assure you, the man is far from Howard Roark. (No , I was not one of the people he scammed my knowledge is of the inner workings)

Nothing Donald Trump says makes me think of Howard Roark.

From The Fountainhead: Chapter XI: Howard Roark to Gail Wynand:

"And isn't that the root of every despicable action? Not selfishness, but precisely the absence of a self."

"I don't see anything evil in a desire to make money. But money is only a means to some end. If a man wants it for a personal purpose—to invest in his industry, to create, to study, to travel, to enjoy luxury—he's completely moral. But the men who place money first go much beyond that. Personal luxury is a limited endeavor. What they want is ostentation: to show, to stun, to entertain, to impress others. They're second-handers."

"A truly selfish man cannot be affected by the approval of others."

"It's easy to run to others. It's so hard to stand on one's own record. You can fake virtue for an audience. You can't fake it in your own eyes. Your ego is your strictest judge. They run from it. They spend their lives running. It's easier to donate a few thousand to charity and think oneself noble than to base self-respect on personal standards of personal achievement. It's simple to seek substitutes for competence—such easy substitutes; love, charm, kindness, charity. But there is no substitute for competence."

"They have no concern for facts, ideas, work. They're concerned only with people. They don't ask: 'Is this true?' They ask: 'Is this what others think is true?' Not to judge, but to repeat. Not to do, but to give the impression of doing. Not creation, but show. Not ability, but friendship. Not merit, but pull."

"Listen to what is being preached today. Look at everyone around us. You've wondered why they suffer, why they seek happiness and never find it. If any man stopped and asked himself whether he's ever held a truly personal desire, he'd find the answer. He'd see that all his wishes, his efforts, his dreams, his ambitions are motivated by other men. He's not really struggling even for material wealth, but for the second-handers delusion—prestige. A stamp of approval, not his own. He can find no joy in the struggle and no joy when he has succeeded. He can't say about a single thing: 'This is what I wanted because I wanted it, not because it made my neighbors gape at me.' Then he wonders why he's unhappy."

"Every form of happiness is private. Our greatest moments are personal, self-motivated, not to be touched. […] I think the only cardinal evil on earth is that of placing your prime concern within other men. I've always demanded a certain quality in the people I liked. I've always recognized it at once—and it's the only quality I respect in men. I chose my friends by that. Now I know what it is. A self-sufficient ego. Nothing else matters."

A "self-sufficient ego" is not an attribute of Donald Trump.

WE have tried everything else. Maybe a businessman wont do the terrible fiscal things that have been done lately.
Cruz is a bit preacher at heart. I dont think he can convince people to join with him and do anything like he wants. He is a trickster who tries what I would call underhanded things to get his way, and thats why his fellow senators dont seem to like him. Not a good thing for a president.
Personally, if Trump doesnt get nominated, and Sanders doesnt get nominated, I hope BOTH of them go independent, and the repubs put in whoever (doesnt matter really as none of the others would win against hillary anyway regardless of the polls).
That way, hillary is deprived of the 270 electoral votes for sure, and the house would elect the president, and definitely wouldnt pick her.