He was a supporter of states' rights, drawing on a Southern political legacy that predated the Civil War; his vision of liberty often entailed granting power and discretion to state governments, to help them stand firm against federal tyranny.
As reports emerged about the Circassian plight during the Civil War, the vision of mass death, suffering, and national upheaval had a special significance for a nation laying its fallen soldiers to rest.
But when I think of Yes Minister I think of the best of the two worlds of politics and civil service – of vision and administrative handcraft – coming together for the good of the country.
Whichever version of the history is correct — the scriptwriters of "Chinatown" certainly took sides — no one was more crucial to the outcome than William Mulholland, the Irish-born civil engineer whose vision of finding water for his adopted town was as inspired as his methods were ruthless.
Ryan's been calling his vision "civil society," but he confessed to BuzzFeed that he needs a better term, since "Nobody knows what that means".
No matter what doubts radicals have about contemporary civil society, their visions of democracy emphasize the desirability of transferring power from the state to citizens who would not just elect a government and then act as passive spectators but rather participate continuously in the processes of governance.
But Cameron says neither he nor the civil service need a "vision".
Could we or should we develop a shared vision from civil society in BRICSAM countries for the SDGs?
Today's narrow focus on isolated victims, rightly decried by Mr. Ford, does not reflect a failure of vision by civil rights leaders.
And I hope people do talk to John Ashcroft about his vision of civil rights and his concept of fairness in America, because I certainly did.
If King asked people to climb with him to the mountaintop, Sharpton's vision of civil rights is decidedly less grand.
