A Parable
It's been a long day at work today. When the clock hits five, it's time to make the grinding commute through interchanges and gridlock to the quiet, welcoming seclusion of one's own property. Thank goodness that there's news and talk shows on the radio to block out the noise of other cars. A text message from home says to stop and get take-out.
Turning onto the street now. The neighbor is out mowing the lawn, but the car is too quick into the garage to allow for a chance to ask him about his daughter's upcoming graduation. Oh well. She'll probably have a big party soon, and people will hear it happening. The triathlon runner down the street is out training again, too. It would be nice to know when the next big race is, but the music from the headphones is too loud to allow for asking. Wasn't she getting a divorce, too?
Inside now, greet the family, set down the take-out boxes, drop in on the kids playing their video games, asking if they've finished their homework. Did they enjoy soccer practice? Maybe. Their vague and stunted responses while immersed in a game are hard to decipher. The refrigerator started leaking today, too. Hopefully Home Depot or Lowe's will have someone who knows what's going on. Maybe even their websites can help with the answer. The baseball game is on tonight. Much better than watching the news. The radio already took up enough time with that subject.
Dinner conversation is on the muted side tonight. The first pitch should be thrown soon. The opening notes of The Star-Spangled Banner blast forth from the TV as they have so many times before. The kids talk about school as a commercial break starts. There's been another spat of bullying that the counselors can't handle. One of the kids lost their lunch money in class and no one would admit to having taken it.
Didn't see the mailer from the mayoral candidate earlier. What's their position on big national issues? Can't support them if they lean a certain way. Oh well. The game's getting good now, bottom of the sixth and tied 5-5. This weekend will be nice. Have to dust off those bookshelves though, guests coming next week. Time to think about bed, more meetings tomorrow.
Themes and Thanks
The story just told is an intentional extreme meant to exemplify the ills of the 21st-century American civic culture. While this lifestyle trend set in gradually and generally unnoticed by successive generations born in the 1980s and 1990s, it has drastic social implications in the small and large picture, and the short and long run.
The following consideration of the decline of American civic culture and its effects on patriotism will carefully scrutinize:
(1) Indicators of and explanations for the status quo of declining civic culture,
(2) Solutions for policymakers, and
(3) Solutions for communities and individuals.
The works of Harvard scholar Robert Putnam (via Robert Pekkanen) and Princeton scholar Maurizio Viroli regarding the relationship between society and government especially influenced my consideration of this subject. Many thanks to them for spurring my mind to action!
Flagging Civics
To many Americans, the tendencies exhibited in the parable do not seem harmful. However, the isolation facilitated by such courses of action leads to a decline in civic participation, less awareness and appreciation for democratic heritage, and reduced trust and reciprocity between individuals.
What's happening: Robert Putnam's work on social capital validates this assertion, providing the bridge between day-to-day interaction and government. Putnam's social capital, which is the collective strength of mutual relationships and the associated trust they bring, shows that governments in areas with low social capital (high isolation) are far less likely to function properly and have accountability to their constituents. The lack of social capital also challenges people's sense of commitment to the true ideals of their country, and their genuine patriotism.
Examples of declining social capital in the parable include: listening to the radio for political opinions instead of actively forming one's own opinion, not talking to the neighbors about even the most mundane subjects, looking to buy repair materials instead of asking around (think Dagwood and Herb in Blondie), bullying and petty theft in young school age children, disconnection with local politics, use of television as a substitute for recreational human interaction or mental engagement through reading, and other small details.
Why it's happening: The status quo, therefore, is demonstrably harmful. However, understanding why these trends occur is critically important. Putnam labels the changing family, suburbanization, and privatized leisure as the principle factors in declining social capital. Indications of these factors abound beyond the above anecdotes from the parable. Americans routinely fail civic literacy tests, showing a disconnect with democratic heritage and patriotism. More and more children live with single parents and fragmented families, placing social stress on their early lives. Ubiquitous electronic entertainment drives people, especially children, to spend increasing time with just themselves, reducing the need for direct social interaction and peer involvement that is most beneficial for maturation.
(Associated with new forms of entertainment is the role of the modern media and its implications for society and civic engagement. I wrote about this last August in this entry.)
The outlook appears dire. However, participation could just be changing forms with no net negative effect on social capital. I disagree. Increasing isolation dissuades individuals from acting to solve problems. Internet message boards and blogs (irony? probably) produce material that seems to operate like military products operate in the economy of Orwellian Airstrip One: maximizing productivity while minimizing actual production. New-media activism for philanthropic purposes only creates the illusion of more sophisticated and informed participation in causes. The same problems still exist. Even the media-savvy campaign team of Barack Obama in 2008 relied on armies of volunteers on foot to effectively canvass in innovative ways.
With social capital and civic engagement flagging down to half-mast, solutions are necessary. Government and local communities can provide them.
"From the Government and Here to Help"
With patriotism and social bonds on the decline, the federal government can employ different strategies to foster greater love for country among its citizens. Often, indirect government action can be the best way to effect change, rather than direct and restricting legislation.
Maurizio Viroli in his book, Republicanism, advocated for a return to the ideals of classical republicanism found in Renaissance Italy. The relevant aspect of his work is his discourse on patriotism. Patriotism, according to Viroli, comes from an understanding and respect of a nation's democratic institutions. Respect for these institutions comes best from distributive justice, as Viroli states that "[for] citizens to love their republic and its laws, then the republic and its laws must equally protect all of them." Justice as equal protection and accountability under the law is intimately tied with a meritocratic state, which is predicated on equal opportunity. To act as a government with justice in the context of honest and clear-sighted understanding (avoid revisionism) of American heritage is a paramount responsibility of government.
Not only should the government uphold justice and merit in its actions, it should also establish an educational policy that upholds these values. The American culture of activism and social justice above all can at times beget revisionism out of the desire for moral security. Perhaps prioritizing a classical education with a focus on democratic heritage and institutions while viewing activism and social justice movements in the context of that heritage will improve civic literacy and patriotism.
Furthermore, the government should pointedly avoid creating an excessively nationalist tone. Synthesizing physical characteristics with the intangible love of republican institutions and justice undermines true patriotism. Viroli explains that patriotism and valuing citizenship "does not bloom on the branch of cultural or ethnic or religious homogeneity." Historically, efforts at implementing nationalist ideology ignorant of diversity have led to violence or regionalist reaction. In his book, Mexican National Identity, Michael Beezley discussed how the efforts of dictator Porfirio Diaz (1876-1910) to create a universal Mexican identity failed, and nationalists that celebrated diversity with common citizenship took power in the Mexican Revolution.
To eliminate cookie-cutter nationalism, not only should a civics-based education be encouraged, but the federal government should encourage local organizations to teach young citizens in school more about their communities and microcosms of democracy, upholding federalism and some local autonomy. After all, Reagan was the source of this section's header.
"They're Asleep All Across America"
Local autonomy is important because both broader patriotism and a reinvigoration of social capital come from community action. It is in regular interaction with one's townfolk that bonds of trust form. Maurizio Viroli cited a theorist in stating that "true patriotism is found in the city hall." Awareness of local issues and the election of officials best suited to handle local issues make the most difference for any given community. For it is local policy that makes the most impact on day-to-day living: schools, zoning, recreation, etc. People can often become too focused on large issues that have little impact at home, forsaking the foundations of a democracy by neglecting city councils and neighborhood associations. If communities function well together, patriotism and engagement on a larger scale becomes much more achievable.
Communities can also be defined beyond geographical terms and framed as ethnic groups. Technology can be used in a positive way to allow ethnic groups to reconnect and further their own priorities as a subunit, just as a specific geographic location ought to focus on its local interests. The impacts of ethnic community involvement are profound, particularly in terms of economic growth. Therefore, promoting community involvement in both traditional and unorthodox ways is in the best interest of policymakers.
Ultimately, individuals are the beginning of social capital. Working on teams, joining extracurricular activities such as clubs and sports from an early age, committing to a community cause that involves direct and regular action, holding neighborhood block parties, sitting on the front porch more often, inviting the new family on the block over for dinner, or just taking a run without the headphones in: all of these simple activities lay the foundations for trust, reciprocity, and basic democratic values while never leaving the suburban environment. Arising to involvement in this way also reduces susceptibility to demagogues, Maurizio Viroli claims, as isolated individuals will heed their own opinions or close their social circle to only those that continually reaffirm their belief system.
One more question needs to be asked: can new sources of information and media be utilized in a positive way that increases social capital? As with suburbanization, the answer is that no one development is intrinsically harmful. The real test of its impacts is how it is used. For example, the use of the Internet as a means to coordinate and lubricate the flow of information instead of supplanting human contact and the processing and development of the information itself is a worthwhile application. New growth of social capital can occur in the current reality of the 21st-century United States.
If individuals awake across America to their need for a greater amount of socialization and building bonds of trust, patriotism and civic engagement will greatly benefit.
Broad Stripes and Bright Stars
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Enlightenment theorist, accurately described what a state needs to function when he said:
"The fatherland lies in the relations between the state and its members; when these relations change or fail, the fatherland ceases to exist."Therefore, valuing justice, education, community vitality, and individual involvement will uphold the relations between the state and its members, countering isolation and decline in social capital by building trust and awareness. With these prescriptions, the United States can witness the flag of its vibrant democracy raised proudly and patriotically from half-mast to its pinnacle.
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