Thanks for answering that. However, I've been exposed to US culture since early adulthood and somehow she or her work didn't come up until I joined HN. It seems to me her influence is especially strong here, but that could of course be anecdotal.
From an outsider's perspective it just seems... odd.
I think it's more coincidence than trend. She's definitely discussed more in the US than the rest of the world, but not specifically more on HN. People tend to agree or disagree with her strongly, so when it comes up once it generally doesn't die until everybody who feels obligated to criticize or defend her have made their points.
It is an American/Internet thing in general. Wherever American politics pops up online you will eventually see someone reference her and get piled on, or see someone accuse the other of being "Ayn Randian" or whatever.
If you enjoy this sort of thing, check out reddit sometime.
I don't agree with the answers you're getting. The US is a subset of the world. People into computers in the US is a subset of the US population, which is also grouped differently than in Europe. HN is in turn a subset of those people.
The US is more right-wing than Europe. People into computers in the US are fairly affluent, probably even more so compared to Europe. HN readers are more business focused and less hacker/community focused than other people into computers.
Generalizations of course, but I would bet few of the people answering you have been to CCC for instance.
I think it's also a libertarian type of view that appeals to technocrats and nerds. The focus on logic, individualism and meritocracy is something that appeals to a lot of the more nerdy among us.
I personally find Ayn Rand too simplistic and from a literary point of view hardly readable but I think she's definitely an important part of American culture but I think at this point she's not as widely read as 20 or 30 years ago.
From an outsider's perspective it just seems... odd.