The quiet and humorous atmosphere of the Museum of Everyday Life belies the seriousness of its message. In my contemplation as a "philosopher in residence" here, I not only come to appreciate my toothbrush, I consider the people around me. More often than not in our daily lives, we are oblivious to the individuals as well as the objects who, through their work, enable us to live our lives. But even deeper than this, it is their Being and not their Doing that matters.
America today is replete with forces that simultaneously bring people together and tear them apart. Community organizers and activists can and should be “norm entrepreneurs” who connect disparate people with one another based on values and interests – people who otherwise feel helpless and “the only voice in the wind,” as one woman recently wrote to me. The alternative is to submit to the centrifugal forces of dislocation, violence, and susceptibility to scapegoat-seeking and demagoguery that is the result in the breakdown of democracy.
