THE DAY OF THE DREAMER

    How did machine politics develop? Were machine politics and the bosses all bad? What did they do for the citizens?

    What was the Progressive movement? Was it a revolt of the middle class and the rich against the masses and democracy? Was it , as the historian Richard Hofstadter wrote, an attempt to remedy the evils and negligences of the period of industrial growth? Why does he use the term 'negligences'? Why was business used as a model for reform?

    What characteristics did the Progressives have in common? What did activism mean to them? Will things change for the better without the citizenry getting involved in their government? Can democracy, as practiced in the United States, survive apathy or does democracy, as practiced in the United States, die as a result of apathy?

    What were some of the specific reforms of the Progressive movement? Were the various laws and reforms constitutional? Should laws be in accordance with the Constitution or should they change with the opinions of the moment? Can the Anerican nation survive when laws are constantly changed and there are no absolutes in law or morality to hold on to..? Can a society be simply based on change? What were the long term achievements of the movement?

    The idea that a government is responsible for the welfare of its citizens is not a new idea but the Progressives made it a more commonly held belief. Much of American history had involved individual responsibility and government noninvolvement in the affairs of everyday people. Does the government have the ability to create a better society? Are there limits on how far it should or can in a positive sense be involved in our personal and family lives? Who determines what family life should be like? How does 'the government" know what is best for us?

     Copyright © 2005 Gary Brady