ABSTRACT
The individual chapters of this edited volume come together to tell a compelling story about the relationships, and the possibilities, amongst and between citizens and their governments. The story is about the possibilities of governing differently, in ways that don’t oppress, marginalize, or limit people, and about bringing different sensibilities to the practices of administration. The Progressive era administrator-one who is the expert, is “in charge,” and, through the proper management tools, will administer the “right” way-is an administrator of the past. The Progressive era administrator’s habit of mind emphasized managerial control over administrative processes. This administrative stance is doomed in situations in which difference and disagreement bring us to the table instead of agreement and similarities, and in situations where we are least likely to work together because of political, ideological, racial, ethnic, economic, and social differences. In a word, Progressive era administration cannot serve us in contemporary times. True, we can make the trains run on time, but everything else about train operation can be subjected to different interpretations, depending upon where the interpreters stand.
