e often analyze geopolitics through the lens of Realism (military power) or Liberalism (institutions). But as the global order fractures in 2026, those frameworks are failing. They measure capacity, not psychology.
A better map for the current era is Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged.
Rand didn't just write a novel about trains; she created a taxonomy of competence and entropy. She categorized human beings—and by extension, nations—into those who create energy (The Prime Movers) and those who extract it (The Looters).
If we map the current geopolitical board to Rand’s archetypes, the chaotic signals of 2025 suddenly align into a perfect narrative arc.
Here is the Atlas Map of the World.
1. Japan is Atlantis (Galt’s Gulch)
For a long time, I viewed Japan as Eddie Willers—the loyal, competent retainer keeping the old machine running. I was wrong.
Japan is Atlantis.
In the novel, Galt’s Gulch is hidden by a refraction ray to keep the Looters out. Japan uses a different force field: Language, Culture, and Immigration Policy.
While the West (The Looters) demands open borders and global homogenization, Japan—like Galt—simply opted out. They looked at the global Ponzi scheme of population growth and said, "No. We will not participate." They are accepting the "Strike" (population decline) rather than diluting their civilization.
They are also the only ones building the engine. While California can’t lay high-speed rail due to environmental lawsuits, Japan is drilling through the Southern Alps to float the SCMaglev at 600km/h. That is the definition of Rearden Metal. Japan is the Civilizational Ark.
2. China is Hank Rearden (The Unappreciated Workhorse)
Hank Rearden is the man who does the dirty work—smelting the steel and pouring the copper—only to be mocked by the family he supports.
China is Rearden. They are the factory of the world. They do the heavy lifting that makes modern life possible. Yet, like Rearden, they are politically clumsy. They assume that because they have the Merit (manufacturing capacity), they command respect.
They don't understand that the Looters (The West) don't care about merit; they care about control. China resents the West’s moralizing while we consume their exports, trapped in a dynamic of mutual resentment.
3. The USA is Francisco d’Anconia (The Chaos Agent)
Francisco d’Anconia is the most talented man on earth who masquerades as a degenerate playboy to destroy his own copper mines, preventing the Looters from seizing them.
The USA is Francisco. To the outside observer, America looks like a degenerate empire—obsessed with culture wars, debt, and entertainment. It looks like it is burning its own value.
But does it hold the detonator?
The US controls the dollar, the AI innovation, and the military. The question of 2025 is simple: Is the US actually Francisco—deliberately crashing the old system to reset the board on its terms—or is it just a drunk heir destroying its inheritance?
4. The EU is Wesley Mouch (The Regulator)
Wesley Mouch is the "Coordinator." He creates nothing. His only power is to write Directive 10-289 to stop the productive from growing too fast.
The EU (Brussels/Germany) is Wesley Mouch. They lead the world in regulation—AI acts, carbon taxes, GDPR—while producing almost no new technology giants. Just as Mouch grinds the economy to a halt in the name of "Stability," the EU has regulated its own industrial base into irrelevance.
5. Canada is James Taggart (The "Nice" Parasite)
James Taggart is not an evil genius; he is a weak man who uses "humanitarian" language to mask his incompetence. He relies entirely on the achievements of others to stay alive.
Canada is James Taggart.
The Canadian economy has stopped producing. It relies on protected oligopolies (telecom/banking) and a massive real estate bubble (fake wealth). Yet, like Taggart, Canada constantly moralizes to the world about "Diversity," "Safety," and "Social Good."
It builds its entire identity on "Not being the US" (Not being Rearden), yet relies 100% on the US for defense and trade. It is the psychology of the envious younger brother.
6. The UK is Lillian Rearden (The Status Broker)
Lillian brings no money to the table. She brings "Class," connections, and tea parties. She mocks Hank Rearden for being "crude" while spending his money on fur coats.
The UK is Lillian. London is where the Reardens of the world (China, Russia, the Middle East) come to buy respectability. They buy the townhouses and send their kids to Eton. The UK sells "Status" and "Reputational Laundering" to the highest bidder, secretly despising the source of the wealth they live on.
7. Eastern Europe is Cheryl Taggart (The Betrayed Idealist)
Cheryl was the innocent shop girl who married James Taggart because she thought he represented "Greatness." She believed the lie.
Eastern Europe (Poland/Baltics) is Cheryl. They spent 50 years under Soviet rule dreaming of "The West." They joined the EU/NATO expecting a club of heroes and industrialists. Instead, they found bureaucrats and stagnation. They are now the tragic believers realizing they married a fraud.
The Conclusion: Don’t Be Eddie Willers
The tragedy of Atlas Shrugged is Eddie Willers. He is honest, hard-working, and loyal. But he is left behind on the broken train because he lacks the agency to move.
He assumes the system will fix itself. It won't.
In 2025, you cannot afford to be Eddie Willers in a James Taggart country. You must identify where the Prime Movers are going, and you must follow the competence.
Find your Atlantis.