"Really, the fault with "Atlas" is that it posits an awful world-spanning System that in factual reality, just doesn't exist."

I can't agree with that. I don't believe there's some secret, scheming Conspiracy making schools stunt the intellectual development of children. Nevertheless, that is the overwhelmingly common outcome in my society.

There's no System trying to corrupt the world. Just lots of individual actors acting in accordance with that they perceive their interests to be.

There's no Invisible Hand, either. Yet markets self-organize.