Political culture resists change

Mon, 05/23/2011 - 23:00 — admin

The election of 1980 shows that changing the faces in Washington is not enough to relimit government or achieve fundamental changes sough; by the New American majority that gave Republicans control of Congress Nov. 8.

New impulses must be created. New ways of thinking must take root. The largest obstacle to the New Majority: The "big government" culture of Washington, where:

  • Politics is everything. More than anywhere else in the country, people who live and work in Washington believe government has a dominant role to play in most of the things in life, and in all the most important things. Nearly all social and economic problems are seen as failures of government policy, and only government solutions are considered for those problems.

    • Worse, by its policies and actions, the culture of Washington undermines what political scientist Harold Lasswell called the nation's "civic order " (individuals, families and voluntary civic institutions) as it expands the role of government (the "public order") by indulging the leaders of the nation

    Reboot Your Life

    Reboot!

    It’s better to wear out than rust out.”  That is the message of Reboot!  While American culture glamorizes the “Golden Years” of endless leisure and amusement, Phil Burgess rejects retirement, as he makes the case for returning to work in the post-career years, a time he calls later life.

    Reserve Your Copy