Participation
How do we understand the value of civic and political participation in an era of sharp partisan divides? Since the 1960s, participatory democracy has been a value strongly embraced by the left, and many of the most spectacular examples of participatory politics have come from progressive groups, yet we are also seeing more conservative groups, whether the Tea Party or the Second Wave of American Libertarianism, embracing similar practices. Do these shared tactics suggest some kinds of shared values or do they amount to an escalation of the kinds of ideological warfare already being conducted within institutionalized politics?
