Samuel Gregg provides some background to our present cultural/political situation, in a post called Mitt de Tocqueville.
…if the liberal commentariat deigned to pick up a copy of the second volume of Tocqueville’s Democracy in America and read the chapter entitled “What Sort of Despotism Democratic Nations Have to Fear,” they’d find the link between creating tame citizens and a state that generously volunteers to do everything on their behalf spelt out quite gracefully…
hat tip: John Couretas
