In this paper, the author provides a buffet of ideas to make a coherent case for a democracy in which citizens can be truly sovereign by becoming the agents of their own destiny. He traces the history of various trends which threaten the development of civic agency: technocracy, specialism, and a consumer-view of the citizen, among others. He also…

Urges faculty involved in community public service to reject an "outside expert" role based on the discredited and outdated theory of positivism. Positivism considers the detached, rational observer the highest judge of truth, thus contributing to the detachment and negative view of most people toward politics. Supports reinvigoration of…

The nation's educational system mirrors the dynamics of our marketplace democracy, recasting parents as self-interested consumers. Jane Addams' philosophy of education (enhancing people's productive capacities to benefit the commonweal) has been revived in Public Achievement, a work-centered, civic-earning program in St.Paul, Minnesota, that helps…