In this first book generated by the Hoover Institution's Initiative on American Individualism and Values, the contributors reveal how, over the last several decades, public policy in the United States has weakened the institutions of civil society--which play a critical role in forming and sustaining the qualities of mind and character crucial to democratic self-government.
The authors examine: -How we deal with the tension between liberty (doing what you want) and virtue (doing what you ought)Although no individual author agrees with every observation and every assertion in every essay, they are united in believing that the defense of liberty in our day requires rethinking the complex relation between a citizen's character, civil society, and government.