Terry Newell is currently director of his own firm, Leadership for a Responsible Society. His work focuses on values-based leadership, ethics, and decision making. A former Air Force officer, Terry also previously served as Director of the Horace Mann Learning Center, the training arm of the U.S. Department of Education, and as Dean of Faculty at the Federal Executive Institute. Terry is co-editor and author of The Trusted Leader: Building the Relationships That Make Government Work (CQ Press, 2011). He also wrote Statesmanship, Character and Leadership in America (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013) and To Serve with Honor: Doing the Right Thing in Government (Loftlands Press 2015).
All in Civic Virtue
Evidence that three administrations have been lying to the public about the war in Afghanistan has been met mostly with Congressional and public apathy. This is dangerous for our troops - and democracy.
The coming months will test the American experiment in self-government. It is a test we dare not fail.
Whether we have ticker tape parades may be no big deal. But the lack of unifying goals and pride in what democracy can give the world is.
As the recent concert of the Crozet Community Orchestra showed, there is a beating heart in every community, a spirit central to our lives and happiness as Americans. .
Anger is human but can destroy human dignity. More awareness of the thinking potholes it puts in our paths might avoid us driving so dangerously ahead.
Our ability to deliberate about core public issues we face is compromised by poor understanding about our Constitution and history. Too many of us cannot pass a test of basic civic literacy.
We are a social species, needing human connection. Yet loneliness is scarring the American landscape.
Sacrifices built this nation, and our freedom is the dividend that past sacrifices have earned. Our leaders should demand more from us.
The Senate confirmation process through which we recently passed was a test of our American experiment. In regard to the character of the nominee, the President, the Senate, and many of the people themselves, America failed the test.
If we used logic alone to decide our views on public policy issues, we should expect much less extreme partisanship. So there must be something going on below the level of reason and conscious awareness. There is.
The seesaw between personal freedom and social obligations has waxed and waned. The last fifty years, however, has seen an imbalance: the demand for more rights without a corresponding balance of social responsibility.
We can choose to live a life of gratitude, for both the gifts of love, beauty, and life we receive and for those we are privileged to be able to offer others.
It is easy to forget what is good in America. Negativity seems to sell much better, and the virtual world makes it so much easier to spread. But if we allow ourselves to believe that America is coming apart at the seams, we bring that reality closer.
When we twist morality to serve politics, we damage even more than individuals; we threaten the society upon which all our hopes for human betterment depend.
When disrespect flourishes on the national stage it trickles down into daily life. Our leaders in politics, the media, business, associations, and religion should be exemplars of the behavior we need to foster in civic life. Disrespect teaches, and its lessons are hard to unlearn. Respect is the only antidote.
The state of the "free press" is not the greatest cause for concern. Our ability to think about what it offers, without emotional and logical blinders, is what should worry us more.
Perfect institutions cannot be expected from inherently imperfect people. But our major, national institutions can be better. Strengthening them must begin with action to restore the primacy of moral values and ethical behavior in institutional life.
Those tempted to send nasty tweets or hurl hate at others, should think not just about how good it feels but about what good it does. Tearing us apart to save us is irresponsible. Freedom demands more.
A sense of humor today is essential for leaders, yet no one seems to think that politics and public life have a place for healing humor. By itself, it won't cure our ills, but it could be useful medicine.
Religion and politics share a joint interest - fostering healthy people, families, and communities. Yet religious values are often ignored in fostering or opposing political views.
