A review of Political Order and Political Decay:
From the Industrial Revolution to the Globalization of Democracy
(Authors: Francis Fukuyama)

It would be so great if everyone in the country read this book. It really ratchets-up one’s perspective on our government and its strengths and weaknesses.

Fukuyama describes a number of major historical transitions in political institutions that have taken place across diverse societies around the world:

• from band-level to tribal-level societies
• from tribal-level societies to states
o where a state is defined as a hierarchical, centralized organization that holds a monopoly on legitimate force over a defined territory
• from patrimonial to modern states

A review of Stealth Democracy:
Americans’ Beliefs About How Government Should Work
(Authors: John R. Hibbing and Elizabeth Theiss-Morse)

It’s commonly assumed that greater political participation is desirable, but it appears that is not what many voters want. All that many of them want is to not be played for suckers by self-serving politicians and special interests.

I learned about this book in a 2016 Atlantic article by Jonathan Rauch. It’s not a new book , but I think it’s an important one. I’m not sure I can improve on Rauch’s summary, so: