Bill: Some years ago I taught an adult-education class for a local college, on the history of Western Civilization. The course had been developed around Kenneth Clark’s PBS series “Civilization.”
Clark began by asking “what is civilization?”. His answer, briefly, was “I know it when I see it” and then the camera focused in on the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. Then, he explained what was socially necessary to produce some a thing in its time.
That was effective, but I always followed that by reading to the class your essay titled “The Web of Trust” about your learning to fly your airplane using instruments only, your point being, as best I remember it, that civilization is a “web of trust” whereby we all live by the interaction of trust-worthy purposeful human actors.
I’m writing how to suggest that you revive that essay and lecture and apply it to the current social and cultural situation in the US and the world. Our civilization seems to be falling apart,, and we need some reminders of what is was, of what it could be, and how that can be accomplished.
Just putting a bug in your ear. . .
Greetings to Scott and Steve. You guys are great!
Terry Elniff, Asheville, NC