That government exists to serve its community, and that this purpose cannot be achieved unless the community itself shares in selecting its governors and determining their policies, are a deposit of fact left, as far as we can see, permanently in the wake of doctrines and forms, however transitory the latter.
John Dewey: “That government exists to serve its community, and that this purpose cannot be achieved unless the community itself…”
Editor's note · Context
Dewey asserts that government must be accountable to the community it serves.
Share
More from John Dewey
Publication is partial and the public which results is partially informed and formed until the meanings it purveys pass from mouth to mouth.
But the wingèd words of conversation in immediate intercourse have a vital import lacking in the fixed and frozen words of written speech.
Competition will continue, but it will be less rivalry for acquisition of material goods, and more an emulation of local groups to enrich direct experience with appreciatively enjoyed intellectual and artistic wealth.
Systematic and continuous inquiry into all the conditions which affect association and their dissemination in print is a precondition of the creation of a true public.