Civic Knowledge

There seems no easy way around the conclusion that the citizenry's civic knowledge is in a state of grave disrepair. As citizenship becomes more passive, civic knowledge becomes more unnatural--the consequence of schooling rather than doing. Yet civic knowledge, especially about constitutional essentials and recent political history, remains an essential virtue for citizens. Civic knowledge is the basis for holding opinions, and having opinions is empowering, not only because the opinionated argue and agitate, but also because they vote.