to The Village Square

“The Grace and Power of Civility…”

April 28th, 2008

“… Lessons From the American Experience for the Coming Four Years.”

This essay written by David M. Abshire, president of the Center for the Study of the Presidency, is my new favorite reading. It’s fairly impossible to pull out a quote as the whole read is imminently quotable, but here’s a go at it:

Many Americans are inclined to look back on the founding generation and its Age of Passion with deserved reverence. But though they are revered today as miracle workers, their powers, as Madison reminds us, were the powers of men, not angels. their gifts were also plenty and diverse… As the greatest and most productive generation in our history, and perhaps in world history, we must learn from the examples of these men - their ability to hold ideals so strongly and to maintain their convictions while still listening to opposition and making allowances for human failings and compromise.

Read the whole thing. Now.

Entry Filed under: Politics as UNusual?