The Common Good of Democracy

America in One Room: a demographically representative sample of the voting electorate assembled to discuss policy issues. (Credit: ritvsihu45 / Wikimedia Commons)

“A nation is formed by the willingness of each of us to share in the responsibility for upholding the common good.” Barbara Jordon

“In a politically diverse nation, only by finding … common ground can we achieve results for the common good.” Olympia Snowe

“Democratic politics should serve the common good.” Amy Gutmann & Dennis Thompson

These are fractured times that imperil democracy in the Western world and beyond. The authoritarian surge of Donald Trump’s MAGA movement is the imminent menace in the US. His notorious plans for a second term in the White House are flagrant and wholly antidemocratic. There is no provision for the common good in Trump’s autocratic scheme nor any corresponding sense of common ground, and compromise is out of reach. Perhaps more importantly, we the people are at risk of forgetting democracy’s contribution to the common good.

Neoliberalism and War Culture (or, Who Has Time to Pay Attention to War?)

Protesters march through St. Paul, MN down University Avenue and end with a rally on the steps of the capitol building, March 19, 2011. (Credit: Fibonacci Blue / Wikimedia Commons)

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GUEST BLOGGER:

Jeffrey St. Onge

Defiance College

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Democracy, it seems, is in danger. It is now a well-worn commonplace that our system is suffering; some evidence of this includes low voter turnout (36.4% in the most recent midterm elections), a lack of political engagement (especially among the youth ages 18-30), a lack of knowledge of the basic fundamentals of the American political system (for example, only 65% of citizens could pass a citizenship test in a randomized telephone poll), and a pervasive ignorance about international affairs, particularly those which deal with war and foreign policy. Elected officials represent only a small minority of citizens, and a growing segment of the population appears to lack interest in politics.

It’s not that U.S. citizens are too dumb to figure out how to participate in democracy. As Stanford Communications professor James Fishkin has observed, when presented with information, and when given the time to think about it, most individuals are able to engage in reasonable discussions about complex policy. In other words, it is not a cognitive deficit that plagues the disengaged voting public, but a value deficit. Political engagement is perceived as a choice that is simply not worth the time or effort. This is particularly noticeable among college students. A recent study of University of Michigan students, for example, found that fewer than 50% view themselves as either politically active or informed. These students seem to have decided not to become involved. Why, after all, should they pay attention when there is so much else to do?

The notion of political engagement as a choice is consistent with a culture thoroughly saturated in the logic of neoliberalism. While neoliberalism is a multifaceted phenomenon that guides economic thinking along with social life (often combining the two by framing aspects of social life like education and health care in terms of economics), it is useful here to consider it for its mythic qualities.