Tom Van Wyen is back with a new Harmony Project essay — and this one is lighthearted, in Tom’s words, but it asks a serious question. Taking his cue from one of his favorite books, Bill McKibben’s Radio Free Vermont, Tom wonders how we hold people in power accountable — in the 2026 and 2028 elections, and every day in between — without giving up our own responsibility to think independently, act with integrity, and stay civil toward those we disagree with. Here is Tom’s essay in full.

Authority Without Wisdom

The Challenge of Accountability

One of my favorite books is Radio Free Vermont: A Fable of Resistance, by Bill McKibben. The book’s protagonist, Vern Barclay, a local Vermont radio personality, unexpectedly finds himself as the leader of a movement to have Vermont secede from the United States. Toward the end of the book, McKibben offers this observation:

“When confronted by small men doing big and stupid things, we need to resist with all the creativity and wit we can muster, and if we can do so without losing the civility that makes life enjoyable, then so much the better.”

People can rise to positions of great authority without acquiring the judgment, humility, or self-awareness that ought to accompany that authority. We should respect legitimate authority without confusing authority with wisdom, and we should challenge poor judgment without abandoning our own integrity.

A foolish decision doesn’t necessarily make someone a foolish person. Good people make bad decisions, and intelligent people can exercise terrible judgment.

That’s not to say that everyone in government is either good or intelligent. But the real test is whether those in power can acknowledge their mistakes, accept accountability, and change course. Humility, after all, is an essential quality of effective leadership.

But what happens when our elected representatives are unwilling or unable to acknowledge their mistakes, accept accountability, or reconsider their decisions? Can a society become so large and complicated that its citizens begin to feel powerless, even while retaining the right to elect the representatives they believe best reflect their interests and values?

And if citizens begin to feel that their voices no longer matter, what becomes of the relationship between those who govern and those who are governed?

I think the central question for both the 2026 and 2028 elections is: How can we hold those in power accountable without surrendering our own responsibility to think independently, act with integrity, and remain civil toward those with whom we disagree?

And while you’re thinking about that, I urge you to visit your local library and check out a copy of Radio Free Vermont — you’ll be glad you did!

Stay Golden,

TVW

Read Tom’s full essay here: Read the full essay (PDF) — and if it brings someone to mind, pass it along to them. Stay Golden.