Most people pay more into insurance programs than they get out. That's how all forms of insurance works. Sheesh.
Ayn Rand ended up taking government benefits because she had to, not because she was trying to get back what she paid in. That's the key part.
Even if she could afford to take care of herself and was just trying to game the system to get her money back, that's morally pretty suspect, too. Imagine trying to mount the same argument about someone who deliberately crashed their car to "recover some of that money" they had to pay in insurance premiums.
Rand spent her whole life decrying people who are dependent on government assistance as looters and parasites, and then she spent the last few years of her life completely dependent on government assistance without it changing her stated beliefs. If you don't see the hypocrisy there, you're trying awfully hard not to.
She is an illustration that you can lead a successful, productive, non-moochery life and still end up needing government assistance at some point.
Strange as it seems that I would defend Ayn Rand, presumably if she hadn't been forced to pay taxes she would have been contributing to some other form of health insurance that would have taken care of her when needed.
Ayn Rand ended up taking government benefits because she had to, not because she was trying to get back what she paid in. That's the key part.
Even if she could afford to take care of herself and was just trying to game the system to get her money back, that's morally pretty suspect, too. Imagine trying to mount the same argument about someone who deliberately crashed their car to "recover some of that money" they had to pay in insurance premiums.
Rand spent her whole life decrying people who are dependent on government assistance as looters and parasites, and then she spent the last few years of her life completely dependent on government assistance without it changing her stated beliefs. If you don't see the hypocrisy there, you're trying awfully hard not to.
She is an illustration that you can lead a successful, productive, non-moochery life and still end up needing government assistance at some point.