Whither, or Wither, the Good Society?

摘要

The recent election is a timely reminder of the importance of the concept of the "good society" in American public policy. Indeed, a strong vision of the good society has arguably become the mark of a successful president. Ronald Reagan was lionized as the president who reminded us of "the shining city on a hill" (Walsh 2004). Reagan's successor, George H. W. Bush, was chided for ignoring the "vision thing," while George W. Bush's re-election has been attributed to the large turnout of "values voters" (Joel Achenbach, "A Victory for 'Values,' but Whose?" Washington Post November 4, 2004, C01; Meyer 2004). A clear vision of the good society aids voters because it provides a coherent vision of morality, the role of government, and the place of America in the world. Historically, there have been a number of competing visions of the good society in American culture. In this paper, we focus on three. We begin with two visions currently competing for dominance among political and economic conservatives. We then define the institutionalist vision of the good society to counter these first two. We close by briefly speculating on the apparent greater appeal of conservative visions and offer a solution.