In Ayn Rand's magnum opus
Atlas Shrugged, a devolving economy fueled by crony capitalism and misplaced moralism destroy our country. Moral capitalists attempt to save the world while others refuse to contribute to its demise (thereby going underground).
This is a must read for anyone paying attention to the world today. This is a must reread for any Rand lovers. This is a must re/read for anyone paying attention to the world today who dislikes Rand. Lastly, this is a must read for anyone who has ever chanted "This is what democracy looks like."
About midway through the book, after the shadow government has passed myriad directives meant to improve the economy by limiting those participating in the economy and subsequently worsened the economy, the cronies bring out Directive 10-289. Even they are nervous about it, nor do they know (or care) if it is legal. When it is introduced to the public, it is clouded in "for the public's good" phrases that bring to mind contemporary phrases like "social justice."
The actual purpose of Directive 10-289 is, essentially, to freeze the economy to give the great crony minds time to figure out how to solve the problem without the economy getting worse while they work on their plan. (And, of course, to allow the cronies to remain in power. All that they do has the underlying purpose of remaining in power.)
The problem, of course, is that the economy is a living thing that can only be halted via death. Like any mighty beast, it also needs the freedom to move as it pleases; more restrictions lead to a psychotic beast that is difficult to predict and even more difficult to contain. Some animals can never be tamed. Some animals were never meant to live in cages. Rand's cronies did not understand this, nor do our modern cronies.
DIRECTIVE 10-289
Point One. The right to have a job. No one can be fired, no one can switch jobs, and all children will be assigned a job by the government when they turn 21.
All workers, wage earners and employees of any kind whatsoever shall henceforth be attached to their jobs and shall not leave nor be dismissed nor change employment, under penalty of a term in jail. The penalty shall be determined by the Unification Board, such Board to be appointed by the Bureau of Economic Planning and National Resources. All persons reaching the age of twenty-one shall report to the Unification Board, which shall assign them to where, in its opinion, their services will best serve the interests of the nation.
