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comment by user-inactivated
user-inactivated  ·  4329 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: Ayn Rand is for children.

Yeah, I've read that book. It's interesting that Greenspan managed to make everyone forget he was an acolyte of Rand's right about the time he shot to fame. I've also heard the claims of Greenspan's massive (negative) influence on the west.

So if your argument is that Rand (and libertarianism) influenced Greenspan, who influenced everything else (especially the bubble, which he partially caused), then I agree with you. But that's an extremely roundabout way to have influence.





kleinbl00  ·  4329 days ago  ·  link  ·  

In what way is it roundabout? That's like saying Von Mises was only relevant in an extremely roundabout way because he'd been dead 15 years by the time the Austrians really started being prominent.

user-inactivated  ·  4329 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Because Rand was only one of presumably dozens of influences on Greenspan's political makeup, and Greenspan was only one of several causes of the 2008 collapse. And keep in mind that fringe beliefs can cause major occurrences and still be considered fringe.

(Also as I said below to u/sphericalvoxel, fringe to describe libertarians is somewhat hyperbolic.)