How Divided is America, Really?

Complete video at: http://fora.tv/2007/07/04/What_Does_America_Stand_for_Today?

Alan Wolfe, author and Professor of Political Science at Boston College, argues that modern American culture may not be as politically divided as many Americans believe.

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"What Does America Stand for Today?" with discussants Michael Sandel, Rep. Rahm Emanuel, Amy Gutmann, Theodore B. Olson, Sen. Arlen Specter and Alan Wolfe. Mickey Edwards moderates the discussion.

Some of the most inspired and provocative thinkers, writers, artists, business people, teachers and other leaders drawn from myriad fields and from across the country and around the world all gathered in a single place - to teach, speak, lead, question, and answer at the 2006 Aspen Ideas Festival. Throughout the week, they all interacted with an audience of thoughtful people who stepped back from their day-to-day routines to delve deeply into a world of ideas, thought, and discussion.

Alan Wolfe is a Professor of Political Science and Director of The Boisi Center for Religion and American Public Life for Boston College. His work in recent years has focused on cultural and religious issues in American politics. Wolfe's One Nation, After All (1999) argued that the "culture war" was largely the work of intellectuals; most Americans were not deeply divided over moral issues. His book The Transformation of American Religion (2003) used ethnographic data to argue that American religion has been shaped by American culture more than the other way around. Wolfe's latest book, Return to Greatness: How America Lost Its Sense of Purpose and What It Needs to Do to Recover It (2005), offers a fresh take on American national identity and purpose. Wolfe looks back at specific moments in our national experience when, in the face of sharp resistance, aspirations for the idea of national greatness shaped American history.

Mickey Edwards is director of the Aspen Institute-Rodel Fellowships in Public Leadership. Edwards represented Oklahoma in Congress for 16 years, where he was a member of the House Republican leadership. He is currently a lecturer at Princeton’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, and he has taught at Harvard, Harvard Law School, and Georgetown University. Edwards also been an advisor to the State Department and is a director of the Constitution Project. He has been a columnist for a number of newspapers, is the author of two books, and is co-author of a third. He has chaired task forces on foreign policy for The Brookings Institution and the Council on Foreign Relations.

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[ForaTv]

DaXue, thanks for the comment. A link to the full version of this program is available in the video description. (We just launched a new home page today, by the way...if you check it out, let us know what you think.)

Nick Ryan

FORAtv Video Editor

[dalecampbl6]

unless you were black at the time, and you counted as nothing..then as 3/5 of a person...right? am i missing some facts here or perhaps you are just being way too efficient with the wording of the Constitution?

[dalecampbl6]

Conservatism means = sucking up to the rich, making sure they keep all the money they make with the least amount of incentives to create jobs in USA ("free" trade, tax cuts on income, estate, investments) AND just as important, divert the attention of the voters with JESUS and GUNS and GAYS, and ah...basically turn this country's masses into uneducated dumbasses because the rich, after all, only holds 1% of the vote, and at best perhaps 5% of the votes, if you count upper middle class!!

[Kabaraz]

fuck fora TV. too much bullshit, too many tools.

[RadicalWhig]

If they has stopped immigration 400 years ago, America would be full of happy native Americans growing maize and tobacco, hunting bison, and generally having a good time - so where do you draw the line?

At what point does the current generation of immigrant-descended Americans get the right to say, "No more, thanks!"?

[armanflint]

Actually, I not sure anymore. The U.S. is a Constitutional Democracy, which is sort of like a Constitution based Federal Republic that is a type of Liberal Democracy. Not to be confused with the Constitutional Republic of Uruguay.

[armanflint]

The United States is a CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC and is a form of Liberal Democracy.

[califsucks]

As long as our leaders are politicians the division will continue.The only thing that matters to politicians is whos in power at the end of the day. They spend more time grooming their careers. Im for abolishing congress and installing a true democracy by allowing every citizen to have their say on every issue by voting via referendums.

[califsucks]

1st of all we are unfortunately a republic not a democracy When you have multiple races you are going to have division. diversity creates division. Our government has failed us by not stopping immigration 200 years ago.We have plenty of people and dont need anymore.

[logosfabula]

Fake political divisions mislead people to the urgent problems we are experiencing.

In Italy we have a similar bipolar political 'cultural' arragement, which looks towards voters, but behind the scenes there's an antidemocratic aim to power, all about gaining control of financial and infrastructural core of the country.