E5 - James Taggart's Obsession with Blamelessness Artwork

A Socialist Reads Atlas Shrugged

In this podcast, a self-identified Socialist examines the arguments in Ayn Rand's book, Atlas Shrugged. Far from simply shooting down the ideas in the book, Jonathan Seyfried does their best to argue on fair ground. Through a close read, listeners will come away with a genuine appreciation for Rand's strongest arguments as well as an understanding of the flaws. NOTE: this is not a read aloud of Atlas Shrugged, but instead a critical close reading.

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A Socialist Reads Atlas Shrugged

E5 - James Taggart's Obsession with Blamelessness

February 12, 2022 • Jonathan Seyfried • Season 1 • Episode 5

In this episode, Jonathan explores the nature of the problems Eddie Willers raises with Taggart Transcontinental Railroad President James Taggart. What responsibility does a business leader or a political leader have when it comes to "national conditions?" How do situations like these highlight the obsession over blamelessness in our society and culture? Jonathan concludes with musings on the relationship between reciprocity and loyalty.

Today's Moment of Non-Contradiction comes from Quora.

In this episode, I mention Chidi Anagonye, the character in the TV series The Good Place. Also, I mentioned Semco and Ricardo Semler.

My five themes to explore in this podcast's close read of Atlas Shrugged are:

What is human nature?
Straw-man arguments and their impact on the world Ayn Rand creates.
Dagny Taggart as a true hero.
How empathy can be de-legitimized.
What is Capitalism and what is wrong with it?

Questions or comments? Email me at: socialistreads@gmail.com

Learn more about Jonathan Seyfried at their website, https://jonathanseyfried.art

If you'd like to support my creative work, please visit my Patreon page.

The intro/outro music was composed by John Sib.

The podcast theme image was created by Karina Bialys

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