Views from Crestmont Drive

Subtitled “The Ten Habits of Good Citizens”
(Penguin Press, January 2023, xix + 217pp, including 42pp of acknowledgements, “Where To Go For More,” notes, and index)

Not familiar with this author, who is president of the nonpartisan Council on Foreign Relations. I was fascinated by this book because first, it’s a counterpart to all those alternate ten commandments lists, and second, it flips the idea of civil ‘rights,’ wherein the government is obliged to protect certain beliefs and behaviors of individuals, to consider instead ‘obligations,’ wherein individuals are expected to display certain behaviors toward their fellow citizens. His list is a good one, though I wondered just what he meant by the tenth, “Put Country First.” Over what? We’ll find out.

Key Points

• He begins by examining the failures of our rights-based democracy: complex problems are not best decided by popular vote, and too many people lack expertise to vote intelligently. And the Constitution was a compromise on some key issues.
• Comparing 1968 to Jan 6th, for example, things are getting worse. Our system was set up when the population was comparatively tiny; now we suffer a tyranny of the minority. Institutions are being weakened. Social media has no quality control.
• Obligation #1: Be informed. Understand how things work. Understand what facts are.
• #2: Get involved. Vote, and do more if you can.
• #3: Stay open to compromise. Don’t hold out for perfection; beware criticism from extremists.
• #4: Remain civil. Argue issues, don’t make things personal.
• #5: Reject violence. Using crime for political purposes is terrorism.
• #6: Value norms. These are the unwritten traditions, rules, customs, etc., that reduce friction in society. Like looking out for neighbors, and accepting election results.
• #7: Promote the common good. We all have a stake in the well-being of our fellow citizens.
• #8: Respect government service. People make mistakes, but there are mechanisms for detecting and correcting them. Public service might be incentivized, but not required.
• #9: Support the teaching of civics. The basics of American society and economy. Immigrants often know these better than natives.
• #10: Put country first. Over party and person. Unlike examples from Republicans and MAGA.
• Conclusion: Obligations, along with rights, are at the core of the idea of citizenship. Think institutionally: leave one in better shape than how you found it. We can’t count on virtue winning out.

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