Ekphrasis

Alan shrugged when Ayn invited him to a tranche-lunch. “Oh, come on, it’ll be fun!”, his rabidly foamy-mouthed economic BFF said in response.

“But Ayn,” retorted Alan, “if man’s ego is the fountainhead of human progress, shouldn’t we go out and hunt for food in the wild using our bare hands? I mean, come on...all of the niceties provided to us by our (let’s face it) slave labor in southeast Asia really just makes it too easy for us to sit back, fart, and enjoy life without any effort.”

“True, true,” replied Ayn, “but since people can use their own homes as banks and borrow against them, the invisible hand of the market will eliminate any need for us to eat insects or other disgusting things. Besides, here in the confines of our stock-index-graph prison cell we’re protected from such unpleasantries. Would you like to have a slice of a pork?”

“Sure, Ayn, sure...you taught me the virtue of selfishness, and I’ll follow your objectivism-based dietary policy.”

“Bon appetit, Alan...”