Ever since I cast my first vote for Jimmy Carter in 1980, I’ve identified politically as a progressive. And while I continue to support many progressive political goals, the political position advocated by my new book, Developmental Politics, is best characterized as post-progressive. This emerging post-progressive perspective is not “anti-progressive,” it seeks to better integrate progressive values with the laudable concerns of America’s mainstream culture.
In my new 1,200 word article published in Areo Magazine, I discuss the goals of post-progressive politics and outline its method of “cultural intelligence.” Cultural intelligence is the ability to recognize the mutual interdependence of America’s three major worldviews. This fresh approach to our cultural conflicts transcends the horizontal continuum of left and right by charting a vertical dimension of normative growth that can lead to a more evolved democracy. My original title for this article was “How to Transcend Progressivism’s Pathologies Without Moving Toward the Right.” But Areo’s editors went with the shorter title above instead. Please check it out, and if you feel so moved, leave a comment.