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Weary of political pragmatism, Lowi prescribes a return to idealism. That idealism is at times Procrustean and not easy to put into practice, but all of it is refreshing to hear. His program calls not for less central government but for more —and this time with teeth. He would establish a senior civil service group, for example, composed of generalists with ties to no single agency, who would be responsible for providing a "proper centralization of a democratic administrative process." Sloppily written laws, he feels, have been much to blame for the failure of government. Accordingly, he would strengthen congressional control over federal programs by putting a five-to ten-year limit on all organic acts of legislation. Congress would then be free to overhaul or eliminate programs that do not turn out as they were intended. He would end de facto apartheid in congested areas by breaking down the artificial distinction between cities and suburbs. A study of Chicago convinced him that Negroes could be redistributed by bus throughout city and suburban schools until they constituted about 15% of the student body in each. This, Lowi feels, would achieve integration not only of education but of housing as well, for homeowners would be far less likely to move from racially mixed areas if the percentage of Negroes in the schools were everywhere the same.
In his zeal to point out liberal shortcomings, Lowi may blame liberalism for failures due to the largeness of the state and its duties, human folly in general, human greed in particular. But his book is a useful and often fascinating corrective to much current theorizing about liberalism, government and decentralization. There is considerable evidence, moreover, that many Americans, growing as generally outraged about the state of the nation as Ralph Nader specifically was about the quality of U.S. automobiles, are willing to take stern measures to be sure that the machinery of government is well made and well run.
*As opposed to 19th century liberals, who believed in laissez faire.