It was written three-quarters of a century ago, in 1934, in the depths of the Great Depression and with a sense of the peril looming in Europe, but this treatise on how to realign British civic culture along more compassionate and democratic lines is startlingly relevant today, as many of the dangers it addressed loom once against across Western societies.British pacifist REGINALD CLIFFORD ALLEN, 1ST BARON ALLEN OF HURTWOOD (1889-1939) explores rational, sensible solutions to seemingly intractable problems, from the shaky foundations of economies to avoiding even wars that appear necessary. An active figure in British politics between the World Wars who was instrumental in the rise of the Labour Party, Allen was a voice of reason then... just as he can be again today.