Two Cheers for Politics Why Democracy Is Flawed, Frightening―and Our Best Hope

Americans across the political spectrum agree that ourdemocracy is in crisis.We view our political opponents with disdain, if not terror, and anincreasing numberof us are willing to consider authoritarian alternatives.InTwo Cheers for Politics,JedediahPurdy argues thatthisheated political culture is a symptomnot of too much democracy but too little.Today,thedecisionsthat most affect ourlivesand our communitiesareoftenmade outside the political realm entirely, as market ideology, constitutional law, andcultural norms effectively removebroad swaths of collective life from the table of collective decision.The result is a weakened and ineffective political systemand an increasingly unequaland polarized society.If we wish to renewthat society,we'llneed to claw back the ground thatwe'veceded to anti-politics andentrust one another with the power to shape our common life.