As we draw closer to the 2026 midterm elections on November 3rd, I offer a brief reflection about civic virtue and the dangers of authoritarian leaders.
Civil virtue refers to ethical standards for public behavior. The survival of democracy depends on it because it governs everyday life: how we treat others, what we think and do about the world around us: about nature, business, culture, religion, family life, and so on. Serious reflection and engagement are essential. We observe. We judge. Then, we act.
Without a healthy civic virtue, democracy collapses into either chaos or authoritarian dictatorship.
The danger of such a collapse is a very real possibility. Civic virtue is cast aside by authoritarian “leaders” because they see social order maintained not by adherence to shared public values but by fidelity to the dictates and wishes of the authoritarian leader, who is in control.
Authoritarian “leaders,” in fact, like and promote chaotic societal situations in which people live in fear and uncertainty. They create big issues to distract people from what is really going on. Authoritarians behave without accountability. They have zero tolerance for criticism and promote unreasonable fears about the outside world that often involve evil conspiracies and persecution by “them” against “us.” In fact, they denigrate and remove those who observe and report what is really happening.
In a healthy democracy there are certain generally held civic virtue values: for example, that murder is immoral, theft is immoral, harming innocent people is immoral, and lying and spreading false information is immoral. When these immoral actions are turned into social virtues or social normalities, society is in trouble. I recall the words of the French philosopher and writer Voltaire (1694 – 1778): “Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.”
So what does one do about authoritarian leaders and their followers?
The best way to confront the narrow and incorrect vision of authoritarians is through broad-based education that emphasizes critical, analytical thinking skills. It starts at home. Broad-based education emphasizes the importance of gathering evidence and then continuing to conclusions. In our communities and parishes, we need to set up channels for dialogue. We need to support those people and institutions that promote multi-cultural knowledge and understanding.
We need to courageously work against ignorance and speak-out about dishonest or faulty information. We must speak-out about those who advocate and publish lies and falsehood.
Civic virtue insures, in effect, the survival of the human spirit. By the “human spirit” I mean those positive aspects of humanity that people show toward one another: empathy, respect, generosity, connection, emotional bonding, and identifying with the other. These elements require a sense of equality and a demand for human rights and justice in all domains of life, especially social and economic justice. Extremely self-centered righteousness leads to conflict, not cooperation; to fear, not hope; to aggression, not mutual respect; and to suspicion, not trust.
People set and adjust their civic virtue through interaction with family and friends, and with social, religious, political, and educational groups of which they are a part.
After the midterm elections, regardless of who wins we will still need to safeguard our democracy based on shared common-good public values and civic virtue behavior. This means caring not just for ourselves but taking responsibility for the well-being of others.
The American cognitive linguist and philosopher, George Lakoff (1941) stressed in his book, The Little Blue Book: Talking and Thinking Democratic, “Houses fall apart if they are not maintained, so do democracy and the gifts of democracy that we barely notice and take for granted: the right to vote, public education, human rights, due process, unbiased news, clean water, clean air, national parks, safe food, good jobs, ethical banking practices, affordable mortgages, fair elections.”
It is all part of civic virtue and avoiding social chaos.
- Jack
Dr. John Alonzo Dick – Historical Theologian
Personal email: jadleuven@gmail.com
