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So, I read a brief item in which Mike Huckabee was quoted as saying of Obama's brief childhood stay in Indonesia "Most of us grew up going to Boy Scout meetings, and, you know, our communities were filled with Rotary clubs, not madrassas." This led me to a well-written article telling me something that I already knew - American service clubs are growing like weeds overseas. Rotary, my organization of choice, is down only slightly in the US, but climbing radically overseas. Other organizations, such as Lions clubs and the Boy Scouts, are in much worse shape in the US but going gangbusters overseas. This growth is especially noticeable in developing countries.
The longer article also advances two valid points. The first is that these service clubs grew because people moved into cities. Rotary was founded by Paul Harris, a man who moved to Chicago from a small town. The second point is more controversial, which is that clubs and non-political groups foster democracy.
Previous political thought was the clubs and organizations grew out of democracy - Alexis de Tocqueville thought our clubs and groups were an outgrowth of our political freedom. But that doesn't explain the great growth of clubs in places like Egypt and Abu Dhabi - hardly bastions of freedom. Instead, the theory is that people learn how to be democratic in a club. After all, clubs require compromise, persuasion, and not getting everything your way - exactly what a democracy needs to function. It's an interesting theory.
The longer article also advances two valid points. The first is that these service clubs grew because people moved into cities. Rotary was founded by Paul Harris, a man who moved to Chicago from a small town. The second point is more controversial, which is that clubs and non-political groups foster democracy.
Previous political thought was the clubs and organizations grew out of democracy - Alexis de Tocqueville thought our clubs and groups were an outgrowth of our political freedom. But that doesn't explain the great growth of clubs in places like Egypt and Abu Dhabi - hardly bastions of freedom. Instead, the theory is that people learn how to be democratic in a club. After all, clubs require compromise, persuasion, and not getting everything your way - exactly what a democracy needs to function. It's an interesting theory.
