ONE of the most unfortunate legacies of the American experience in the middle part of this century is the degree to which expectations have been inflated with regard to government’s ability to resolve complicated social conflicts. As executive orders, legislative mandates, and court rulings came down to the people from on high, imperatives of individual responsibility were gradually abandoned. And as federal action replaced personal obligation, “citizenship” was redefined with an expanded conception of privilege and a greatly reduced understanding of duty.