Hamiltons Republic: Readings in the American Democratic Nationalist Tradition
Arguably the most effective and often the most controversial force in modern politics is nationalism, which both unites and divides. According to Lind (The Next American Nation, LJ 6/1/95), such an interpretation of nationalism, especially in the U.S. context, is inaccurate and insufficient. Nationalism, Lind contends, is neither dirty nor un-American but has deep and positive roots in American soil, producing a rich country domestically and a powerful one internationally. To a large degree, Lind is on target, for central to the American political and intellectual tradition is the idea of the nation, as exemplified in the thought and practice of the likes of Hamilton, Lincoln, and the Roosevelts. Such Hamiltonian visionary nationalism, Lind argues, is essential for recovering our civic culture and realizing the purposes of our polity as expressed in the preamble to the Constitution. His book must be encountered in the ongoing debate about the health of our body politic. Recommended for all libraries.?Stephen Shaw, Northwest Nazarene Coll., Nampa, Ind.Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.