"Today's images of what it means to be a success undermine a democratic culture. The good life is defined by private pursuits, whether shopping in the mall or battling it out on reality TV. Cooperative labors that solve problems are more empty pieties than principles we live by. Consumerism contributes to the erosion of human solidarity, as religious leaders such as the late John Paul II have observed, but part of the problem also comes from liberal education. Professionals are trained to look at people in terms of their deficiencies not their talents, and to be detached from the civic life of places."
(Excerpt from "To rebuild after a hurricane, be an architect of democracy" by Harry C. Boyte)
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