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Podcast: The decline of moral community and the rise of public corruption

Podcast: The decline of moral community and the rise of public corruption

Why don’t liberals seem to care about moral behavior and the moral communities that support it? Why don’t conservatives seem to care about rampant public corruption at the heart of our political system? If we care about doing the right thing, can’t we care about both? There is perhaps nowhere in our civic debate where the conversation has grown so calcified as the one about morality.

We’ve long since stopped any form of real communication, instead hurling accusations at each other across what seems to be an impossible – and ever-widening – divide. But if you take a fresh look at the best case each side makes, they each have a real argument, in fact we think each sees an “asteroid” coming our way – with the problem getting bigger over time and the longer we ignore it. And until we cross the partisan divide and realize that team effort can solve both problems – as we would behave if they were real asteroids, we must deflect to protect life on earth, we’re stuck in a do-loop of failure to communicate.


Guests on this episode of Village SquareCast are Lucy Morgan, Pulitzer Prize winning journalist and Dr. Bill Shiell, President of Northern Seminary and former pastor at First Baptist Church.

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Democracy on the Line: LGBTQ+ Movements as Critical to Democracy

People parading with a giant rainbow flag

Democracy on the Line: LGBTQ+ Movements as Critical to Democracy

In recent years, LGBTQ+ people and rights have been increasingly targeted as part of a wave of authoritarian illiberal politics, promoting a global “anti-gender” movement. These attacks on queer people have been characterized as “the canary in the coal mine”; an early warning sign of wider democratic erosion. Autocratic leaders have exploited anti-LGBTQ+ public sentiment to crack down on freedom of expression, freedom of the press, the right to organize, and to silence dissenting voices. In response, many LGBTQ+ movements are re-emphasizing their roles as democratic actors.

LGBTQ+ Rights and Democracy

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For Imre Huss, Fixing Democracy Starts With Talking to a Stranger
a couple of people sitting at a table with cups of coffee

For Imre Huss, Fixing Democracy Starts With Talking to a Stranger

The Democracy Architects Council, presented by The Bridge Alliance Education Fund and Civics Unplugged, offers a paid, one-year fellowship for eight fellows ages 18 to 28, each selected for their work across a distinct sector of democratic life.

The youngest member of the Democracy Architects Council is building AI-powered civic tech, but he says the real work of democracy still happens face to face.

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A Lantern in the Rain — A Beacon in Dark Times
a statue of abraham lincoln holding a cane
Photo by Simon Ray on Unsplash

A Lantern in the Rain — A Beacon in Dark Times

Around 9 PM on May 1, 1865, John Ring lit his lamp and headed to the horse barn. A steady rain was falling. He hung the light on a hook, scanned the stalls, checked the bridle and harness, and moved to the horse. Then he filled the lanterns with kerosene and began rigging the wagon.

Inside, Mary dressed in proper attire and made sure the children — John Jr. (17), Julia (14), Belle (10), Patrick (8), and little Martin (4) — were ready. John Jr., Julia, and Belle would walk behind the wagon in the rain; Mary, John, Patrick, and Martin would ride under a tarp. It would be a two-hour trip to Joliet. They started down the nearly pitch-black road, the wagon rocking in potholes.

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