Ayn Rand references multiply, in unlikely places

Judith Klinghoffer’s generous reading:

…to find an  article about the much dismissed author in the primary leftist French foreign policy outlet is rather astounding.

(…) as Nicholas Kristof  dares to point out, people who work in development know that those much maligned sweat shop owners provide the poorest of the poor with the greatest opportunity for a better life. The same cannot be said about foreign aid or international agencies such as the IMF, the World Bank or UNRWA. Those merely coddle dictators and enable terrorists ( U.N. Agency That Runs School Hit in Gaza Employed Hamas and Islamic Jihad Members ). After all, they are the best producers of the commodity altruists seek most, misery. You wish to see the results of the toil of greedy sweatshop factory owners? Go to China where hundreds of millions have been lifted from poverty. You wish to see the result of the toil of NGOs and International institutions? Go to Gaza where over 80% of the people depend on foreign aid.

Why? Because, as Ayn Rand understood, to do good they need to be needed. The greater the misery, the more important they are. 

(…)

Rand rejects the notion that individuals have obligations towards others. Yet, her characters are inherently generous. How come? They act out of compassion and empathy instead of guilt.