On Saturday, I was with my 89-year-old mother-in-law, Martha, and my wife, Jackie, in Chestertown, MD. Martha knows ice cream holds a dear spot in my food hierarchy and psyche and had been planning for weeks to lure me to Chestertown with the promise of Stam’s, a local fountain shop since 1886. But when we discovered Stam’s was closed, a series of interactions with two passersby ensued – good reminders of what people are looking for in the country and what each of us can do.

For years I often talked about how Americans had retreated from the public square into small circles of friends and families. That same narrative has persisted in how different groups, authors, and others have diagnosed what’s happening in American public life and politics. But that view of America is now outdated, and a different view is needed if we are to move ahead productively.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of The Harwood Institute's ground-breaking report, Citizens and Politics: A View from Main Street America. It was one of the first major studies to reveal people were not "apathetic" about politics and public life (as polls said they were), but felt disconnected and pushed out.

Yesterday, the “No Labels” movement was launched and then roundly attacked from all sides. Its purpose: to call people back to core American beliefs and productive engagement in public life and politics. Their tagline: “Not Left. Not Right. Forward.” The knee-jerk attacks just go to prove the movement is sorely needed. Here's why.