Lippmann argues poverty, chastity and obedience are a more primitive and brutal means of controlling a society, compared with self-government. Notably, he argues that, "To create a minimum standard of life below which no human being can fall is the most elementary duty of the democratic state.Drift and Mastery, 141" Lippmann extends the implications of this argument asserting that those afflicted by poverty are "unfit for self-government." Similarly, Lippmann advocates moving beyond valuing chastity. Instead he argues, "Our interest in sex is no longer to annihilate it, but to educate it, to find civilized opportunities for its expression."Drift and Mastery, 143 Summing up this line of argument, Lippmann asserts old virtues sought to restrain citizens whereas true democratic virtues should provide people with a rich life where they deal with life in all its complexity.
