The book that changed my life

you cant know know that, ignorant pig

Markets are a tool, not the end all and be all. Learn something about market failures, aka, what happens 99% the time. Government will always be necessary.

Check out Ecological Economics. Learn about biological altruism and the selfish gene. There is much more deep shitte than just some neo-classical econ theory that totally disregards reality.

Ayn Rand was an atheist, I'll give her that, but we have much more information now that just make neo-classical economics obsolete.

I admit that markets fail now and then, but only when it is hard to link costs/prices to benefits. Externalities need to be internalized, and there is a role for government here. Government is also necessary to enforce property rights and punish fraud and breach of contract. But beyond that, it is government and prohibition that tends to fail 90% of the time, where markets tend to work much better than governments. Evolution is like a market economy with competition. Adam Smith was right.

Markets don't fail - the best way to "internalise externalities" is to extend property rights.

However, most people don't care about economics.

The main thing to understand is that laissez-faire capitalism is *morally* superior to the mixed economies and dictatorships of today. It is explaining this morality to the general public (ethical egoism vs. religious and secular altruism) which will be the main task in securing the next few decades in which O'ists might have real political muscle.

I'm on your side, but in my experience, the moral arguments just tend to piss people off. I have much more success with the practical arguments. Free markets provide better conditions for the poor. The poor in free market countries are better off than those with more government control... That kind of thing. Using moral arguments often makes people think you are saying that THEY are immoral.
It is important that the moral arguments are "out there" but ther's a time and a place to make them.