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Post by mnkdfann on Dec 8, 2017 12:22:13 GMT -5
Ayn Rand was a quintessential American, born in Russia. As a child, growing up under the communistic conditions, she saw firsthand the stranglehold that government can impose upon individual achievement. She detested the imposition of collective values on society because she valued reason and knowledge above the mysticism of religion and social convention. Her fathers pharmacy and building were confiscated by Lenin and the Bolshevik revolution when she was 12, helping to form her political views. In her book, Atlas Shrugged, the most creative and intelligent individuals are convinced by John Gault to withdraw from society, holding back from their best achievements. They start disappearing from the world, leaving the government officials to basically fend for themselves until they fail completely or kill themselves by being so shortsighted. "It's almost as if they want to die." Is one line I remember. Great novel. It has to be top 10 or 20 novels of all time. A lot of parallels to today's ridiculous government happenings. I highly recommend it. Al Mann would have gotten his invitation to their secret city in the mountains, for sure. Russia plays its long game well. www.washingtonpost.com/news/powerpost/paloma/daily-202/2016/12/13/daily-202-ayn-rand-acolyte-donald-trump-stacks-his-cabinet-with-fellow-objectivists/584f5cdfe9b69b36fcfeaf3b/ Trump said "that he’s a fan of Rand and identifies with Howard Roark, the main character in “The Fountainhead.” Roark, played by Gary Cooper in the film adaptation, is an architect who dynamites a housing project he designed because the builders did not precisely follow his blueprints. “It relates to business, beauty, life and inner emotions. That book relates to ... everything,”"
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Post by porkini on Dec 8, 2017 12:42:04 GMT -5
Gault proposed a solution to this problem in August of that year when he patented his idea of the encased postage stamp. He advertised his invention in the local newspapers as “New Metallic Currency.” His ingenuity was simple and his invention was based on the familiar roundness of coins. As suggested by its name, the encased postage stamp consisted of a postage stamp encased, or sandwiched between two covers made out of brass.[ Friedberg, Arthur. Paper Money of the United States: A Complete Illustrated Guide With Valuations. The Coin and Currency Institute, Inc. 2006. Electronic Book.] Gault was a savvy business man and saw two ways that he could profit off the implementation of these new “coins.” First, Gault sold his currency to businesses and stores with high demand for coins at 20% the face value of the stamp. He soon realized that the bare back covering of the currency provided space that could be used for advertising. Companies paid Gault a two-cent premium on top of the cost of the stamp in exchange for a customized case to the specifications of the companies advertising desires. One of Gault’s largest business partners was J.C. Ayer who took advantage of Gault’s advertising space during the preliminary months of the creation of the currency.[“Ayer’s Encased Postage.” 2011. Accessed 20] <-- Note: link did not work so I did not recreate it here. Gault’s “New Metallic Currency” was only a momentary success. His currency circulated for close to a year until the middle of 1863 when fractional currency issued by the government became popular enough to ease the coin shortage. There were a few factors that allowed Gault’s invention to thrive for only a short time. One of the main reasons was stamps needed for postage became unavailable. Too many postage stamps were being diverted from their main purpose and used as currency to the point that the solution for a shortage of coins created a shortage of stamps for mail purposes. Secondly, the coins were expensive. It cost more to buy the encased postage than what they were actually valued at in the market.[“Ayer’s Encased Postage.” 2011. Accessed 20] <-- Note: link did not work so I did not recreate it here.
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