The common good
Ratings1
Average rating5
15
Ratings1
Average rating5
"...Clear-eyed manifesto for re-centering our economics and politics on the idea of the common good. Robert B. Reich...demonstrates that a common good not only exists but in fact constitutes the very essence of any society or nation...We must weigh the moral obligations of citizenship and carefully consider how we as a country should relate to honor, shame, patriotism, truth, and the meaning of leadership...A fundamental statement about the purpose of society and a cri de coeur to save American soul."--Dust jacket flap.
Reviews with the most likes.
I heard Robert B. Reich speak in Houston virtually a few months ago, and he wowed me with his knowledge about our American political system, his intelligence, and his ethics. I immediately set out to read something he's written, and I was happy to find this book at my local library.
I read it today, and—wow—everyone needs to read this book. Reich opens the book by relating how he heard President John F. Kennedy's famous line, “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country,” when he was a teen. Reich is saddened by how much the overall attitude of our country has changed over the years since then to “What's in it for me?” He goes on to look at the idea of the common good and how that has developed through history, and then he examines the key events of the past that have torn the fabric of the common good from government as well as business. He concludes by proposing several ways (thank goodness!) we can all nurture the idea of the common good in America today.
An exceptional book that could change our country. I want to buy multiple copies and hand them out to everyone I know.
If you are feeling bleak about America, I urge you to read this book and act in ways that will work for the common good. I intend to try.
