Individual and Community

Dr. Rhodes recommended I look at the definition of pragmatism in reference to my last post on personal responsibility and its relationship to community. For what I understand according to Habermas pragmatism is the act of individuals coming together to reach and understanding through communication and shared meaning. I am still a bit confused on the term though Dr. Rhodes and hope we get to discuss pragmatism in relation to the word community more. Dr. Rhodes said I should not consider personal responsibility as an ideology but instead consider how personal responsibility is a necessary tenet within community. Shield defines community of inquiry (a form of pragmatism) where a community of individuals is brought together or linked through the following: problematic situation, scientific attitude, and participatory democracy. Individuals come together to share a variety of ideas surrounding a problem and takes a scientific approach to reflection (critical optimism). Inquiry is defined as controlled or directed transformation towards a situation. I question the participatory democracy aspect of community of inquiry. According to Dewey (as referenced by Shields) the key to a successful community is togetherness and and cooperative efforts to seek the common good in a democratic way. So is this where sustainibility comes in? When there is a cooperative effort and togetherness by a group of individuals to achieve a common good, then there is sustainability? This is my one criticism of personal responsibility and the participation of individuals in a community and the idea of togetherness. Is this to assume that everyone has the same opportunity to participate as individuals? Maybe this is why the personal responsibility argument alone does not work. How can sustainbility occur when not all individuals have the equal opportunity to participate in the cooperative efforts of a community? Dr. Rhodes could we discuss and define pragmatism in class a bit more?