National Parks: Rights and the Common Good

In this book, Francis Lovett examines public parks, especially those administered by the National Park Service, from a communitarian perspective. The author views the parks as an example of a common good_something which is valued for its service to a community or society at large, and not merely for the benefits it brings to individuals or sub-groups. In all public spaces, such as parks, there arise issues regarding the proper balance between individual and sub-group rights and interests on the one hand, and the needs and value of community on the other. Lovett explores these issues in light of the communitarian idea of a common good, and suggests guidelines for the resolutions of these public policy problems. With an extensive introduction by Amitai Etzioni, founder of the Communitarian Network.