About this class The pandemic is not only a public health emergency. The challenge of getting our communities, our societies, our lives back to a place where things can return to normal is also raising important questions about freedom and necessity and the future of our democracies. Our guest this week, John Hofmeister in the United States, has both a broad and intimate vantage point on the topic. He has held senior positions in American society, including the presidency of one of the nation’s largest companies. He is a long-time student of history and government, and his current book continues his innovative work in meaningful action that can move our democracies forward. He presently teaches at the University of Houston and Kansas State University and is also a scholar in residence at Arizona State University’s Global Institute of Sustainability. Recent events in several parts of the world present a complicated picture for the future of democracy, not least in the United States, the world’s democratic superpower, where national militias last month supported by its president staged a violent assault on the country’s legislative assembly. Perhaps most significant is current data from Freedom House, the independent watchdog of global freedom and democracy, reporting that for the fourteenth straight year, democratic governance is in decline worldwide. Is it possible we are living through a collapse of our most cherished form of government, one that is only being accelerated by the exigencies of the pandemic? John Hofmeister Host Lon Appleby, Durham College Founder, Professor Guests John Hofmeister Resources Smart Board Notes
