Democracy Is Held Captive, Not Just By

Aside From Sending Someone To War Or To Prison, Government S Ability To Make People Involuntarily Give Over Their Money Is Its Strongest Exercise Of Authority Over Private Citizens And Their Institutions.

Leaks And Whispers Are A Daily Routine Of News-gathering In Washington.

Democracy Begins In Human Conversation. A Democratic Conversation Does Not Require Elaborate Rules Of Procedure Or Utopian Notions Of Perfect Consensus. What It Does Require Is A Spirit Of Mutual Respect-people Conversing Critically With One Another In An Atmosphere Of Honesty And Shared Regard.

The Problem Of Modern Democracy Is Rooted In Its Neglect Of Unorganized People.

The Point Is, The Political Reporters Are The Ones Who No Longer Understand The Ritual They Are Covering. They Keep Searching For Political Meanings In The Tepid Events When A Convention Is Now Essentially A Human Drama And Only That.