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There are any number of books hitting the shelves these days more-or-less agreeing that despite all that is going right in much of the world, there is a great deal of unhappiness and dysfunction that seems to come with it. Of the several I have read recently, Goldberg's work stands out. He does both a better job diagnosing the problem and exploring what might need to be done to address the present issues. He offers plenty of citations, and an even more statistical appendix, but renders his work very readable and accessible. There are a lot of people who might only warily approach anything written by Goldberg and then read it with jaded eyes, owing to his daily fights in the partisan world of political ideas. But I would encourage a person to set aside preconceptions and at least give this book a try on its own merits.
Goldberg acknowledges what I have found to be true on my own, that freedom and liberty, the system of actual Liberalism (vice anti-Liberal "liberal" Progressivism) provides many tangible and intangible benefits, but does not provide an ennobling banner that makes it easy to rally around. In fact, as Goldberg points out, Liberalism deliberately leaves the question of the "Highest Good" forever open-ended, refusing by design to offer a final solution for all people for all time. (p 2).
Perhaps the greatest contribution of the work is fixing on tribalism as a innate human feature and a major threat to the continuing function of Liberalism. Goldberg highlights that the discovery of Liberalism was not inevitable and it is a completely unnatural state of affairs. Humankind's default state is tribalism owing to eons of evolution. While the definition and composition of tribes may have changed, people are looking to identify with a tribe of their own, and quite often, acting with distrust, even up to violence and savagery, when interacting with members of other tribes.
He takes a close examination of the current environment, how so much of our contemporary culture seems aimed against the very fabric of Liberalism, no matter its measurable benefits. He especially takes on Romanticism and how it dominates our popular culture, as well as alternative proposed political and economic systems. Here is where I had the most angst reading, as a person very much in favor of reason and logic and fact and the scientific method, and a person very much in favor of Liberalism. Despite all of this, I very much need my Romantic release in art and culture, otherwise the world would be a cold place indeed, even if it offered so many other benefits. I wonder is there no way to craft art and culture that embraces our need to feel and express our feelings without it inevitably becoming hostile to the system that provides more positive outcomes for more people than any other system ever tried?
In terms of what to do about all this, Goldberg emphasizes two main points. One is, those in favor of a system of freedom and liberty need to take up the fight every day. We must inculcate our children in those values, we must stand up for those values when they come under attack, we must speak up and speak out about the benefits of liberty and the dangers of alternatives. We also must form and maintain a vibrant civil society, the mediating institutions that insulate us from the state and provide color, meaning, and belonging in our lives. I would say that much of the virtual culture (social media and etc.) provides almost the same feeling of belonging as real-life civil society, but without the other benefits. Hence, technology contributes to the weakening of civil society, as people join online echo chambers, post memes, retweet their favorite messages, and feel all the belonging of being a Mason or a Rotary Club member, but without the real action that comes with those other choices. When a hurricane hits, members of physical organizations donate money, supplies, volunteer themselves for relief efforts, etc. Online "societies" encourage slacktivism, click a like button and move on with your day on the couch.
Goldberg's discussion of his friction with his own former "tribe" is interesting reading. It also reveals, although Goldberg still refers to himself as a "conservative," he has really found himself in our Liberal tribe. The friction with other "conservatives" comes because Americans insist on squashing the triangle of Conservatives-Liberals-Progressives into a binary spectrum of Left and Right, and we call Progressives "liberals" to add further confusion.
In this time of change and angst, Goldberg's book is a rare beacon of light dispelling confusion rather than adding to it. Even if you don't agree with him, his clearly argued and well-cited evidence would make a good sharpening stone for your own arguments. If you are interested in politics, political philosophy, or just what the heck is going on right now and what is best to do about it, I strongly recommend reading it!