An Important Emerging Voice

That is what Senator Cory Booker (D, NJ) calls Senator Ben Sasse (R, NE), noting that "Whether we agree or disagree, when he speaks, I'm listening."

Ben Sasse wrote The Vanishing American Adult: Our Coming of Age Crisis and How to Rebuild a Culture of Self-Reliance in 2017.

Senator Sasse is interviewed on The Charlie Rose Show. In the interview, he notes that—while this book is not about politics—if we don’t tackle this problem, the American experiment is at risk. 

He added that we need to figure out what neighborliness looks like today, address the decline of mediating institutions, social capital, and local engagement. 

In this sense, he conceded, if we do change these we will also change the larger political dysfunction in positive ways.

Senator Sasse has a doctorate in History from Yale. In the interview he often sounds, just a bit, like a professor, making reference to Tocqueville, suggesting arguments like those in Habits of the Heart or Bowling Alone, and more.

My Dad sent me a note in an email and a link to a Sasse story on NPR:

I think this guy is special. Dad

http://www.npr.org/2017/05/20/529130589/not-my-job-we-quiz-nebraska-sen-ben-sasse-on-peaches

So, I had to watch the story, then Dad & I watched the Charlie Rose interview. Today I bought two copies of the book, one for my Dad for Father’s Day and one for me, because I am considering using this in my new Social Entrepreneurship class.

Looking forward to reading the book and discussing it with my Dad.