July 4, 2026! A momentous national birthday. Fireworks and parades for sure. But it is also an important time to step back and reflect on our nation. How durable are the ties that bind us? Do we share core ideas, expectations, and concerns that sustain enough solidarity for us to govern effectively at a national level? As we look back to our founding, can we find ways to celebrate it that resonate more fully with who we the people are today? Can we somehow generate a greater sense of oneness by more fully recognizing the democratic vitality so often found at state and local levels? In our discussion-focused course addressing these and other questions, we will draw on the works of provocative thinkers, past and present, who are relevant to our worrisome moment of time. These will include Carl Schmitt, a German philosopher who saw friend-enemy distinctions as the essence of politics; James Davison Hunter, a contemporary sociologist who underscores the importance of culture in shaping national polities; and Timothy Snyder, a historian/philosopher who urges us to look to freedom, the quintessential American value, in a much more positive, enriching way. Be warned: in our six weeks together, we will not answer fully the big questions we will confront, but as we deliberate on them, we can reasonably expect to frame our thinking about them. And just maybe we will end up adding something extra to our celebration of the forthcoming big holiday.