What Holds Us Together

How Love of Liberty, Equality, and Country Sustains Our American Experiment

A nation can be measured by its laws, elections, or wealth, but none of these answer the question that matters most: How do citizens remain unified over time? What Holds Us Together offers a clear, compelling answer that our American experiment endures only when we sustain a living balance between three essential loves of liberty, equality, and country. 

These are not abstractions. They shape how we govern, how we disagree, and what we choose to preserve. At their best, they reinforce one another, expanding freedom, affirming dignity, and binding us to a shared purpose. But when they fall out of balance, they begin to corrode the very foundations they once upheld, turning tension into fracture. 

In an age of polarization and distrust, this book reframes our crisis not as a failure of passion but as a failure of proportion. Drawing on history and moral insight, it makes a rigorous yet hopeful case that the work of citizenship is not to choose between these loves but to hold them in right relation. Because our republic endures only when we, the people, learn what to love and how to love it well, together.

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ISBN: 979-8-90026-363-2
Imprint: RealClear Publishing
SKU: 18-1698-01
Categories:RealClear Publishing, Political Theory and Ideology, RealClear Publishing

“In these times of disillusionment and despair over the state of the American government, Aaron Dimmock offers a rich and optimistic perspective about the influences that caused our framers to design a system to withstand the threats of self-interested leadership. Aaron makes the case that, while our current challenges may be extraordinary, they were both contemplated by our forefathers and have clear paths to recovery. He reminds us of our privilege to love this wonderful country and responsibility to defend it from tyranny through active and informed engagement.”

—Craig Russell, retired co-leader of Walt Disney Imagineering

“With the clarity of a scholar and the lived experience of a servant‑leader, Aaron Dimmock shows that our nation’s strength has always come from the disciplined balance of liberty, equality, and country. His reminder that ‘we are not passengers on this ship—we are crew’ is a call to stewardship every American should hear.”

—Chris Cassidy, Captain, US Navy (Ret.), NASA Astronaut, and Navy SEAL

Aaron Dimmock

Retired Naval Officer, Founder

Aaron Dimmock, PhD, is a retired naval officer and aviator who has spent more than twenty-five years leading teams in high-stakes operational and strategic environments. He has served in senior roles including as the Navy representative to the senior advisor to the Secretary of Defense for military professionalism. A mission commander and instructor pilot across multiple deployments, he brings deep experience in leadership under pressure. 

He is the founder of the Collective Performance Initiative, LLC, and his advisory work and client engagements span leading organizations across business, education, government, health care, and sports, including American Express, Google, Indeed, LEGO, LinkedIn, MasterCard, Microsoft, Nationwide, Pixar Animation Studios, Starbucks, the Holdsworth Center, Harvard Kennedy School, the Department of the Navy, Mount Sinai Health System, the Brooklyn Nets, and the Dallas Cowboys. 

Aaron has written for Harvard Business Review, Psychology Today, and the Journal of Character and Leadership Development, and his first book is Philosophy Practiced: Behaviors of Responsible Citizenship in a Free Society. Aaron and his wife, Kim, have four children and live in Pensacola, Florida.

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