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A conference paper about New Deal's reconceptualization of rights is presented which is prepared for presentation at the American Political Science Association Annual Meeting, in Seattle, Washington, on September 2, 2011. The paper focuses on topics including the theoretical importance of the New Deal in the American tradition, social contract and welfare state.

Democratic theorists from Jefferson through Tocqueville up into the present day have rightfully highlighted the importance of establishing direct connections between citizen and place, generating the attachments needed for a substantive form of citizenship that transcended self-interest. More and more, people are developing important secondary (and in some cases primary) social attachments through internet communities. This paper looks at the forms of socialization that occur in these communities. In particular it will focus on the way internet identities are simultaneously public and hidden, and the effects that this has on dialogue and communication. In particular it will focus on the effects of anonymity in breaking down some barriers and imposing new ones. It looks at the way the bonds of friendship (and the rivalries and hostilities) can lead to both a greater sense of national inclusivity and remain too self-contained to possess political implications. In particular this paper will focus on two case studiesâ€"the first an on-line gaming ccmmunity, the second a general interest message board. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper looks at the political theory of the New Deal, challenging the conventional wisdom that there is no coherence behind the New Deal program. Using the thought of major New Deal thinkers (FDR, Eleanor Roosevelt, Henry Wallace, and Thurman Arnold) it lays out the philosophic preconditions for the New Deal's overall vision, and examines the ways in which the New Deal fundamentally changes the nature of the American social contractâ??creating a revolution through reform.The first section explores the six assumptions grounding the New Deal.1-Private economic power is in fact a form of government, and as such a democratic people are entitled to limit it.2-The state is an appropriate tool for intervention.3-Human beings are capable of mastering social conditions.4-The United States has conquered scarcity.5-We are fundamentally interdependent.6-There is a common good that united all Americans, and (for political purposes) it manifests itself in the ideal of the consumer.The second part of the paper addresses the New Deal's reconceptualization of our traditional understanding of the relationship between life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. It posits that material and psychic security are necessary preconditions to exercising meaningful liberty and elevates the pursuit of happiness (as defined by the individual) to a status equal to that of liberty. This in turn leads to numerous new social and economic rights that manifested themselves in FDR's 'Second Bill of Rights'.The paper concludes with a preliminary look at the limits of this theory. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The theoretical legacy of the New Deal is its redefinition of liberalism. What makes that legacy remarkable is that Roosevelt and his allies managed to reinvent the term, and with it the role of government in everyday life, while working within a system famous for its inertia, and dealing with an electorate still attracted to ideas of rugged individualism and suspicious of dramatic change. This paper argues that what made the New Deal successful was its ability to update Machiavelli's tactical understanding of the connection between ideology and power to a modern democratic state. The paper will focus in particular on the work of New Dealer Thurman Arnold, who provides the most articulate and nuanced explanation of the New Deal's Machiavellian approach to political theory and political practice.Briefly, Arnold argues that while ideals ultimately inform our political goals, once we agree to enter the political realm it is essential that we make sure ideology does not limit our political possibilities. Effective leadership understands that necessity and the day-to-day reality of political life has to trump our theoretical commitments. The right actions are the ones that secure the power necessary to achieve our desired goals, rather than the ones that maintain ideological purity. Likewise, Arnold argues that power can only be secured with a deep understanding and exploitation of the central myths and symbols of the electorate. This paper will explore the connection between Machiavelli and the New Deal in more detail, and examine its consequences. If Machiavelli provides the theoretical model for practical political change in the United States, what does this say about our understanding of democracy, and its future? ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]