The letter (July 7) from Kang Moy Chiu, describing how he and his neighbors walk Morse Avenue to help the police keep the street safe, is an instructive reminder of two of the unwritten and easily forgotten rules of good citizenship in a democratic society.
The good citizens in a democratic society patrol many beats. In addition to their street, they “walk” their community, the corridors of the statehouse, Pennsylvania Avenue and, with undiminished vigilance, the roads and pathways of many other lands. Our real neighborhood is quite vast.
The good citizens in a democratic society understand that they must communicate to enlighten public opinion and to guide the actions of public officials.
A society as securely bound by written law as ours is will surely constrict us to death if we forget how to walk the walk and talk the talk of the unwritten rules.
