Future Think: How to Think Clearly in a Time of Change

Chapter 12. The Three-Legged Stools of the Political Agenda

So often people get mired in the mental traps and clichés of political ideology that it's a good idea to step back, take in the whole political landscape, and say, “If I had to summarize it all in a few sentences, what would I say?” Because we are asked this question so often and because today's over-informationed people want something brief (preferably a sound bite), our response is to see political forces for change more clearly by using a simple metaphor: It's all about three-legged stools.

Example #1: The Foundation of the Republic

Obviously, different countries are based on different political ideologies. We'll confine our metaphor to the U.S. and similar democracies. Let's assume ...