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Think Higher from Mr. C
Recommended by Forbes
Wealth is created by, and morally belongs to the individual creator. As Rand
observes, since “man has to sustain his life by his own effort, the man who has no
right to the product of his effort has no means to sustain his life. The man who
produces while others dispose of his product, is a slave.”
Let’s break that down a little. Suppose Robinson Crusoe is tired of trying to scoop up
fish with his hands and figures out how to turn a tree branch into a spear, increasing
his daily catch tenfold. Can Friday, who never thought to make a spear, properly
complain that Crusoe has received an “unfair distribution” of fish?
Whatever the complications and intricacies involved, the basic issue is the same
whether we’re talking about a remote island or a complex division of labor economy
like America’s: a man uses his mind and his existing property (i.e., previously created
wealth) to bring new wealth into existence. He doesn’t gobble down an already-baked
pie–he produce.
Wealth Nuggets from CEO MR. C.