Authors Eric Liu and Nick Hanauer have an idea about what has caused the cesspool that is contemporary politics, and they've got an idea about how to make it better. The problem is the “machinebrain”—a narrow, reductionist mindset that treats society as a rigid system driven by rules and zero-sum competition. They call their alternative the “gardenbrain,” a holistic, collaborative view of society as a living, interdependent ecosystem that thrives when actively tended and nurtured by all.

Recognizing that individual well-being is inseparable from the well-being of others, a government shaped by a gardenbrain mindset would prioritize mutual self-interest. The authors have a vision of “true capitalism” that recognizes that prosperity is greatest when widely shared and when every member of society has the chance to thrive.

Central to their call is the understanding that “freedom isn’t free.” They encourage citizens to see civic life not as a mechanical, obligatory process but as a networked, prosocial activity. They emphasize that everyday acts of citizenship—reaching out to neighbors, participating in community decisions, supporting inclusive policies, and modeling generosity and cooperation—are powerful because each small effort helps cultivate the larger “garden” of democracy.

“When you are compassionate and generous, society can become compassionate and generous. When you are violent and hateful, society can become violent and hateful. You can be the original cause of the contagion.”

“We used to assume that people are primarily rational, and now we see that they are primarily emotional.”

“...In societies where there are few curbs on or consequences for bad behavior, cooperation collapses and soon so does the society. This is why any societies that are truly libertarian are in various states of civil war, and why the most cooperative societies with activist governments are the only prosperous, stable, and secure societies on earth.”

BOOK: The Gardens of Democracy

BOOK REVIEW: The Gardens of Democracy

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