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Patriot,

I know what it’s like to lose everything in a fire. That happened to me in
November of 2007 when the Corral Canyon Fire destroyed my home along with 55 of
my neighbors’ homes.

l was flying back from San Francisco, where I’d spent Thanksgiving with
family. Looking out of the airplane window, I could see an enormous, angry
mushroom cloud, as if Malibu had been hit with an atomic bomb.

The next day, I learned that my little roll-on bag and the clothes on my back
were the only physical possessions I now owned in the world. That plus a
scorched plot of land where, other than an incinerated “fireproof safe,” all
other remnants of what had been my house appeared to have been beamed off the
face of the earth.

But of course, I had other inner possessions: my mind, my attitude, and my
determination to persevere.

I also had the inspiration provided by Ayn Rand, how she overcame the loss of
her family and her country and remade herself in the very city where I now
needed to do the same.

Then I had the practical tools of Objectivism, helping me apply reason to
identify and solve problems, motivating me to move forward in this ultimately
benevolent universe, refusing to see myself as a victim, drawing on the pride
I’d earned in past accomplishments to fuel the confidence to power through the
rebuilding process.

But young people today don’t have such tools. Surveys show Generation Z is
anxious, fearful, and lacking in confidence, agency, and direction. They’re
besieged by narratives of victimhood and resentment. They lack the heroic
vision of human possibility so magnificently presented in the literature of Ayn
Rand.

The Atlas Society is on a mission to change that. We understand that daily
reading among young people has plummeted over the last 50 years. So we’re
finding other ways to engage young people with Ayn Rand’s literature, like
adapting her famous novels and screenplays into other forms of media, like
graphic novels, animated videos, and pocket guides.

Please invest in our efforts to bring Ayn Rand’s literature and philosophy to
the younger generation by donating $10, $35, $50, or more today. Click here to
donate now. >>>
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It’s not just about finding the inner reserves to deal with the shock of
total loss. It’s about finding the strength, confidence, and resilience to move
forward and rebuild. Tragically, as those here who decide to rebuild their
homes will soon learn, their nightmare is just beginning as they embark on the
dystopian journey of trying to navigate the costly, opaque, and interminable
permitting process.

This is an ordeal I know only too well.

I managed to be the second of the 55 fire victims in our canyon to rebuild.
It took me three years — two of those tied up with dealing with securing
seemingly endless permits.

One I recall with particular bitterness: the Fire Department itself said it
would withhold their permit unless I, a private citizen, paid for and undertook
the widening of the public road in front of my house.

The public road…

For libertarians and Objectivists who are invariably mocked with the
rejoinder,“But who will build the roads?” my state of affairs held a particular
irony.

Apparently, for the government, the answer to that particular perennial
question was:“Well, the fire victim, of course.”

At least that was their answer until I threatened to unleash a legal
firestorm of my own. Inspired by Ayn Rand, I refused to provide the“sanction of
the victim” to provide tacit moral support in my own victimization.

Now, I want to inspire the next generation to break out of the victimhood
mentality that robs them of their individual dignity and agency. You can help
The Atlas Society spread Ayn Rand’s philosophy by clicking below.


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Of course, the entire experience changed me. How could it not?

It gave me a visceral appreciation of the value of property – not as mere
“stuff” but as a manifestation of work, time, productivity, and creativity. A
living embodiment of choices and priorities. Those who’d say to fire victims,
“Well, at least you’re still alive,” don’t know that several of my elderly
neighbors who’d also lost their homes died within a year or so of the fires.
The stress was just too much.

While the stress of the rebuilding process didn’t kill me, it certainly aged
me.

The Coastal Commission, in particular, refused to let me rebuild my entire
3,000 square foot home, despite my having presented evidence that that’s
precisely what I’d been paying property taxes on for years prior.

Like a faceless bureaucrat out of Atlas Shrugged, they’d repeat, “Our hands
are tied.”

It’s that kind of bureaucratic indifference, incompetence, and, yes, envy that
will now confront the thousands who’ve lost everything in these ongoing fires.

That torture and humiliation will be compounded by the dawning realization
that government indifference, incompetence, envy, and outright anti-humanity
led to policies and priorities that made the destruction wreaked by these fires
so much worse than they had to be:

* Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass leaving for Ghana to attend an inauguration
after receiving notice of impending catastrophic fire conditions.
* This AFTER she cut $17.5 million from the fire budget – which the Fire
Chief warned would undermine their ability to fight fires effectively.
* Endemic prioritization of DEI over competence at the Los Angeles Fire
Department (LAFD), sublimating merit to identity politics in appointments and
promotions.
* The firing of firefighters and other responders for refusing to bow to
vaccine mandates.
* More than 300 fire hydrants were stolen from L.A. County streets between
January 2023 and May 2024, thanks to rampant crime.
* Los Angeles water chief Janisse Quiñones emptying the Santa Ynez Reservoir
RIGHT NEXT TO Pacific Palisades and failing to refill it despite Red Flag
Warnings (while pulling down $750,000 a year).
* LAFD’s decision to send “surplus” fire supplies to Ukraine three years ago
— turned out they were not that “surplus” after all.
* California voters approved spending $7.5 billion to improve water storage
TEN YEARS AGO — but not one reservoir has been built.
* Perhaps the most devastating pursuit of insane environmental policies and
perpetuation of environmental regulations inhibiting sensible forest and brush
management policies, like controlled burns and fire breaks.
When asked whether her magnum opus was a prophecy, Ayn Rand famously replied:
“Atlas Shrugged is not a prophecy of our unavoidable destruction, but a
manifesto of our power to avoid it if we choose to change our course.”

This begs the question: Will the residents of Los Angeles — especially those
who’ve lost their homes and their businesses — will they choose to change
course?

Will they realize the extent to which the incompetence of the elected leaders
they voted for resulted in policies and priorities that made the destruction of
the ongoing fires so much worse than it had to be?

Will the excruciating years ahead of dealing with the permitting process make
them ask:“Why does it have to be this way?”

It doesn’t — and didn’t — have to be this way.

But Californians, at least those who haven’t already “gone Galt” and moved
out of state, will need to choose to change course.

They need…

* To vote for competence, regardless of party.
* To dispense with alarmist climate change shibboleths in favor of sensibly
adapting to our environment to mitigate the endemic fire threat of this region.
* To embrace the exhilarating possibilities of this AI revolution and pursue
technological solutions to deal with California’s age-old fire threat.
* To rediscover a love for humanity — and a love for themselves.
At The Atlas Society, we are helping young people from across the country and
around the world choose to change course. To reject the damaging doctrines of
irrationalism, envy, self-sacrifice, brute force, and collectivism that have
brought centuries of chaos and misery into the lives of millions of individuals.

You can help The Atlas Society offer these young people a rational and moral
alternative in the marketplace of philosophical ideas by clicking below.


Donate
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I hope with all my heart that the victims of these latest fires make it
through stronger, wiser, and more resilient.

And I hope that that wisdom includes a reevaluation of continuing to support
the same leaders and same policies that will lead to the same results next time
we’ve got 80 mph Santa Ana winds blowing through Southern California’s
notoriously flammable landscape.

To do otherwise is to invite an inevitable repeat of the destruction that we
see all around us today in the wake of these fires.

And if that comes to pass, despite this tragically teachable moment, then
what other response is possible except the immortal lines fromAtlas Shrugged?

“Brother, you asked for it.”

If you want to help the next generation choose to change course, embrace
reality, and chart a more rational, productive, and pro-human future, this is
your chance.

Please invest in our efforts by donating today.


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Thank you,


Jennifer Anju Grossman (JAG)
CEO
The Atlas Society



The Atlas Society is a 501(c)(3) Not For Profit Organization. All donations
are tax-deductible.
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