politics

When was the last time you solved a problem by talking about people who weren’t in the room?

Think about everyday experiences outside of politics – in your family, neighborhood, workplace, or the voluntary associations to which you belong. In settings of that sort, when was the last time you solved a problem by talking about people who weren’t in the room? Almost certainly the answer is “Never.” That kind of talk is

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Prosperity at a cost

Were Alexis de Tocqueville to travel to America once again  – further on in our national story – what might he find? Would America fulfill its promise of balancing individual liberty with the common good? Would equality of opportunity be realized, and indeed produce prosperity for all? And would shared cultural values, respect for democratic

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“Them”

As I listen in on private and public conversations about the problems of American democracy, I’m struck time and again by how often our political talk is about people who aren’t in the room. We almost always talk about them – “those people” in Washington, D.C., or in our state capitols – the people we

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