1/ When James Mattis stepped down as secretary of defense, he considered his decision a “matter of principle because of grave policy differences with the administration.” http://on.theatln.tc/jGoidhV 

2/ In examining those differences, Mattis began to question our nation’s legacy. What principles must we instill in the next generation to protect our democracy?

3/ His answer to that question came in eight principles he considers crucial to our nation’s future:

4/ ONE: America is not some finished work or failed project but an ongoing experiment that requires us to continue to evolve.

5/ TWO: Defects are part of the human condition. In a way, this is good news. No one has a monopoly on wisdom or is free from error.

6/ THREE: Acting wisely means acting with a time horizon not of months or years but of generations. Short-term thinking tends toward the selfish.

7/ FOUR: Cynicism is cowardice. We all know cynics. But cynicism is corrosive when it saturates a society.

8/ FIVE: Leadership doesn’t mean someone riding in on a white horse. In a democracy, real leadership is slow, quiet, diplomatic, collegial, and often frustrating.

9/ SIX: Achieving results nationally means participating locally. Community life is sustained not only through government but through ordinary people.

10/ SEVEN: Our “bonds of affection” are paramount. If we continue to sacrifice those bonds to tribal warfare, America will lose one of its greatest features.

11/ EIGHT: Our core institutions have value, even if all institutions are flawed. Virulent attacks on the media, the judiciary, labor unions, universities, teachers, scientists, and civil servants don’t help anyone.

12/ “It is hard work, building a country. In a democracy, it is noble work that all of us have to do,” writes Mattis. http://on.theatln.tc/jGoidhV