The purpose of this essay is to outline a hypothetical series of eight lectures on American government to be given to a group of senior citizens in a Florida retirement center. It will list proposed topics for the lectures, the interpretive themes that would be stressed, and a suggested reading list to supplement the series.
It would be reasonable to assume that senior citizens in a retirement home in 1997 would have been born largely in the decades between 1910 and 1930. Therefore some of them might recall the First World War, some will recall the 1920s, and almost all will have suffered through the Depression with their families. Some will recall Coolidge and Hoover; all will vividly remember Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Most of the men born before 1927 will probably have served in the military during World War Two; some of the slightly younger men will have served in Korea. It is not likely that many will have served in Vietnam unless they were career military. In addressing such a group, one must remember they will be able to check what one says about modern America against their own memories.
What could one say to such a group of men and women that would interest. Comfortable old platitudes would not entertain them, and recent radical analyses of American institutions would probably seem ridiculous and insulting to them. Where would the middle ground be?
They are not likely to think that America is flawless and perfect, and they are likely to consider it obvious that our right to criticize it is fundamental to our freedom. Hence considerations of areas in which our system is not working as well as it should, and suggestions for ways to make improvements in these areas, would probably be accepted fairly well, as long as it is clear that the criticism is intended to be constructive criticism.
The topics to be discussed could include: ways to improve the functions of the Presidency; elections to Congress and stat...