Is Ayn Rand bad for libertarianism?

Others, however, go further. “Rand has this extremist, intolerant, dogmatic antigovernment stance,” says Brink Lindsey of the libertarian Cato Institute, “and it pushes free-market supporters toward a purist, radical vision that undermines their capacity to get anything done.” The Rev. Robert Sirico, head of the free-market Acton Institute, agrees. “If you want to offend, Rand accomplishes that. But if you want to convert—well, for instance, who could imagine Rand debating a health-care bill? I wouldn’t want to take an order from her in a restaurant, let alone negotiate a political point.”

Rand’s tendency to enrage certain audiences could also be blocking a huge opportunity for proponents of small government. Cato’s Mr. Lindsey, a proponent of what he calls “bleeding-heart libertarianism,” notes that free markets are ultimately the best way to help the poor and disadvantaged. It is a familiar argument and a cogent one. Rand’s insistence on the folly of altruism, however, tends to overshadow and even invalidate this message.