Paul Ryan has said he loves Rage Against the Machine. When I heard this something inside me died screaming.

Though I don't find this as surprising as some might--first of all, Ryan is only 2 years younger than I am. They were very, very popular in the 1990s and even fratboys loved them. Mainly for the metal sound. But with Rage, it's very hard to avoid the lyrics, so it's still more than a little weird. But Ryan is an objectivist. He may well believe he shares their views to a point--he just thinks HIS philosophy is the way to achieve a solution to our problems, which of course it is not. He also loves Black Flag, and they too are a favorite of jocks, fratboys and straightedges. One has to assume Ryan means this--this is not a band you mention to gain favor with GOP voters.

And quite often the kind of music you like may be totally inconsistent with your political views. In any case, Tom Morello certainly does not like this and today said so at length.

I just wonder how Ryan reconciles his views with songs like this one, "Ashes in the Fall."

Then again, maybe he does in fact find it "funny how the factory doors close/Round the time that the school doors close/Round the time that the doors of the jail cells/Open up to greet you like the reaper."

I guess once you've reconciled being a Roman Catholic with following Ayn Rand, any kind of cognitive dissonance is easy. After all, what he says he is depends on the audience. For Ryan, A is not always A. If it helps him get elected, A can also be B, or even Q if needs be.
___________________
John Linton Roberson hasn't got a clever tagline this time. Visit him at jlroberson.org.