Aligning Values and Politics argues that empowering individuals for self-actualization is an indispensable tool for attaining freedom; therefore, politics must align with the promotion of self-actualization. Private property rights have in the past helped people to develop skills, but such rights were abused. Once these rights are combined with an ethics of responsibility, the book opens the doors to a nonpartisan analysis of income inequality, inheritance, race relations, abortion and governance. The book argues that the American government is engaged in producing "bread and circuses," inducing people into living vicariously. Using the ideas of Immanuel Kant, the authors claim that we can return to a civil society that values independence rather than entitlements.

Michael Gendre has taught philosophy and ethics in colleges in and near Boston, as well as abroad. He sees Kant and Aristotle as compatible theorists for an ethics of responsibility.

Nicolás Sánchez is past Chairman of the Economics Department at Holy Cross College in Worcester, MA. His expertise is in the field of property rights and institutional analysis.