Ayn Rand’s Philosophy on Helping the Poor, Capitalism, and Human Nature

Ayn Rand left a legacy in defense of reason and freedom that serves as a guidepost for the American spirit–especially pertinent today when America and what it stands for are under assault.

This essay will serve as the first entry in a series of essays in which I will be looking at the work of three major twentieth-century philosophers; Friederich Hayek, Ludwig von Mises, and Ayn Rand.

We know from Atlas Shrugged, and many other Ayn Rand writings, that capitalists are egoists. They trade to make a profit, and this is morally admirable. They are wealth creators. But it is important not to forget that customers and employees are egoists too.