Is there an “American idea?” Would you like to think there is, or could be? What would you like to see included among the values, qualities, or attributes contributing to the national character? How would you talk about this if you were to consider the question with friends and neighbors?

While I am addressing Americans with this question, it is not my place to provide answers. Rather, I offer a brief review of the history of ideas and influences that have made the United States what it is, followed by a proposal: A coherent long-term strategy for making constructive dialogue possible among genuinely concerned citizens.

To pull ourselves out of downward spiraling chaos and degradation we must awaken a problem-solving self-assurance only to be found among friends and neighbors. Consequently, I invite you to join with me and others to seek meaningful community-based dialogue and decision-making despite our differences. Hard times are bearing down on us. We need dependable neighbors with whom we can think, live, and engage—safely, effectively, honestly.

Where do we start? Our challenges are severe and our circumstances are in disarray. Yet, we are not without a foundation of shared principles and worthy values. A common truth is to be found in mutual assistance and generosity of spirit.

Whether young or old, accelerating change has dominated our lives. The consequences are profound. For older people like myself, the world looks very different from the one we grew up in. In recent decades digital technology has been radically transformative in both positive and negative ways. For more than half a century the economic deterioration experienced by most American families, and the degradation of social order now plainly visible, have coincided with a steady loss of trust.

This is not news for those who have been paying attention. The dismembering of long-standing communities by corporate-dominated mass society, the wide dispersal of Americans seeking employment, and most recently, the loss of jobs first to foreign labor and then to automation and artificial intelligence—have all contributed to social dislocation, growing poverty, and political instability.

The coinciding loss of meaningful roots in local communities has led to intensifying anxiety, distrust, and the destruction of coherent families. The collapse of civic life and its networks of support has had disastrous consequences. Perhaps most telling has been the dereliction of personal responsibility, and the stunning acceleration of social violence, mass murder and suicide.

These are among the tests confronting the American people. Hardship and fear grind down an exhausted spirit.

It would be easy to infer that I am coming to you with a pessimistic message. We have, indeed, entered a period of severe hardship. But Americans have been challenged severely in the past. We have suffered; we have overcome; we have triumphed over adversity. The human will has risen to every test in the past, and we will do so again.

However, there will be no quick fix. This book proposes a strategy and path forward that can win renewed vitality and a future we can all respect and believe in. It calls for a long view, supported by courage, loyalty, and steadfast patience.

As a nation steeped in history, we have entered a new chapter of the American story. Our present challenges are set in a turbulent world, and yet we have always made room in this country for the expressions of human will—for vision, creativity, and determination. At first insulated by two major oceans, Americans have become increasingly influenced by the turmoil around us. Through digital connectivity, a seamless global monetary system and ease of travel, our lives are now intimately related to almost everything happening to the human race.

A great many American lives have been lost in foreign wars, and our readiness for war has developed in lockstep with the appalling destructiveness of modern weaponry. Most Americans have watched the bloodshed from the sidelines. The generations born in the decades following the Second World War experienced relative prosperity. Middle class confidence in the “American dream” persisted for a time, but as the 21st century approached, it became apparent that something was not right. Working Americans suffered repeated material blows in the final years of the last century. As manufacturing fled overseas and technology eliminated jobs altogether, comfortable and predictable lives evaporated with devastating suddenness.

The financial crisis in 2008 struck with a finality that crushed the middleclass, and with it the basis for a consumer economy. Massive public, corporate, and private indebtedness, along with the vulnerabilities of a credit-based monetary system, have made a genuine economic recovery impossible without a transitional crisis. Too much debt is not simply a vulnerability; it limits our options and suppresses economic growth.

During a period of several decades, vast numbers of Americans have watched their expectations evaporate. People found their material lives slipping from their hands. The social and political consequences have been as dramatic as the collapsed standard of living that precipitated them. And nothing is so damaging as the loss of trust.

It should be no surprise that mounting anxiety should lead to divisiveness and the belligerence of partisan antipathies. A factionalism immersed in suspicion and distrust now resists all social and political collaboration.

What is to be done?

The courage to respond to distrust with dignity and grace need not compromise our principles. We are, indeed, confronted by a formidable wall of antipathy. Yet, a positive attitude and vision, equipped with an effective skillset, can support tenacious determination. Quiet initiatives led by patient citizens can and will facilitate constructive engagement, practical problem-solving. Where material devastation and emotional pain abound, a quiet, unpretentious leadership can empower clearer thinking and productive purpose. Never has this been so important, whether it be for safety or sanity or the groundwork for negotiating the future.

The objectives of this book are not grand. I will propose a practical path forward and suggest qualities of character, attitude, and responsibility that can prepare Americans to meet converging crises with dignity, and with our morale intact. We will walk through this together.

Let’s be clear from the start: the only way forward requires collaboration. And this will only come by means of honest interpersonal relationships. The dialogue necessary for achieving an authentic American future depends on each of us. How, you ask, can this be possible?

Here’s the plan. The book comes to you, as I have said, in two parts. The first surveys history that I think we would do well to consider in any rational conversation about the future. I offer my observations thoughtfully, but with minimal personal judgment.

As a collection of independent essays, Part One might be slow going for some readers. I have tried to present a view that is honorable and readable. But, if you are eager to get down to business, you may choose to skip ahead to Part Two—and return to the ideas later. I do recommend, however, that you read Chapters 1, 3, 5 and 8, before moving on. This will provide a context for what follows. 

Our greatest challenge will be our willingness to engage in genuine dialogue. Part Two, which begins with Chapter 10, introduces a strategy designed to make such dialogue possible. Supported with practical guidance, it promises to stabilize American society and regenerate confidence in the future. It will take time and it will not be easy. However, I believe it to be the only possible means for navigating through the darkness that looms ahead.

Only by collaborating to the extent necessary will Americans emerge stronger and more resilient on the other side of a very great testing. Hello? I am not interested in talking foolishness.

The strategy offered in Part Two is based on the expectation of a long and deepening crisis. It is founded on the proposition that true dialogue, physical safety, and constructive problem-solving will only be possible in fully functional neighborhoods and local communities, and that it will be practical necessity that motivates such cooperation.

This is about personal responsibility. No one can do it for us. The dependable interpersonal relationships that support safety and survival in a collapsing society will soon become essential. Trustworthiness, truthfulness, and forbearance, the hallmarks of functional communities, will provide stability for a future that would otherwise remain mired in conflict and hopelessness.

I have prepared detailed guidance here, but a secure future will depend on the courage, creativity, and determination of engaged citizens. We must research the tools we need and develop learned skills. Americans must rise to the next level, building on the most honorable elements of our national heritage and committing ourselves to a future that is sustainable, prosperous, and just.

Some will be disappointed that I do not present political arguments or offer explicit criticisms. This is not my purpose and it would not be helpful. There is no shortage of hard-wired politicians and adamant moralists ready to assert themselves. Tensions are high, misinformation rampant, and none of us are in a position to impose our beliefs on others. What we do have need of is the practical means for honest communication and effective problem-solving. Basic necessities such as food security, essential utilities, and safety for children and youth may force us to learn how to do what needs to be done. Learning how to create functional communities will soon become a felt-need for every responsible American.

We are easily offended by the attitudes or behavior of other people. But unproductive thinking is never corrected by force. Resorting to manipulation or coercion will subvert efforts to seek constructive solutions. We must learn to manage our affairs in a manner that can actually get us where we want to go—without endangering our families and communities or destroying the integrity of the United States as a constitutional republic.

I believe current circumstances are too conflicted and emotionally charged for discussion of political philosophy to be constructive. What is essential, in my view, is that Americans find a way forward that will, ultimately, make such dialogue possible. This means creating conditions that support effective problem-solving and collaborative action. This book offers a means for addressing that goal.

Expanding our field of vision

We have a long hard road ahead. I have attempted to confront necessity honestly and realistically. Some readers will think me hopelessly idealistic, and I understand this. Unfortunately, I believe we have no choice. I am offering a way forward which respects American character and ideals, and challenges the durability of our loyalty, commitment and discipline. It is presented here with reasoned argument and practical resources.

Those who feel hopeless will, never-the-less, always have a choice. You can wait and watch as disaster unfolds. You can decide to embrace the course of action initiated here at any time. Your personal commitment as a citizen might not seem significant in the face of historic extremes, but it will provide a basis for you to seek meaningful purpose—and the opportunity to contribute personally to an honorable future.

My argument, and the guidance with which I have accompanied it, does not simply involve good will, kindliness, and cooperation. It is as hard-nosed as the dysfunction that confronts us is stubborn. I am proposing the need to reconceptualize the relationships that sustain a functional society. However, let me be clear: Nowhere on these pages will the reader find any suggestion that we compromise our personal values, views, or opinions.

Rather than alter our views, we would do well to discipline the manner in which we utilize them. It is important that we maintain the integrity of our personal identity while further developing the skills of living and working together. Each of us carries a perspective that contributes to the character and wisdom of the whole—but which can only be made practical if we refrain from allowing ego or emotion to frustrate problem-solving. Whatever your views, if I can simply be helpful in enlarging your field of vision, I will have done my part.

If we respect the concept of freedom we must learn how to live within its’ constraints, to influence one another when possible and otherwise to live and work together with grace and dignity. A future that respects our views as independent thinkers and responsible citizens will allow constructive ideas to flourish, stimulate productivity, and expand our knowledge.

We are experiencing the present adversity as an American crisis, and it is. But it is taking place in the context of a great turning point in the human story, a transitional period when an unprecedented number of monumental crises are converging across the globe. The American experience is inextricably intertwined with the affairs of the world. Never has there been a greater need for the loyalty and constructive spirit embedded in the American story.