All communities have common purposes, although they are not always
as clearly defined as when our nation was at war, or as in the
other cases mentioned in the preceding paragraph. Sometimes the
people of a community, or a large portion of them, seem to be
wholly unconscious that a common purpose exists. This may be true
even in a family or in a school. And when this happens, the effect
is the same as if there WERE no common purpose. No club or
athletic team can be successful unless its members have a common
purpose AND UNDERSTAND IT. Insofar as our communities are
imperfect--and none of them, is perfect--it is largely because
their members fail to recognize or understand their common
purposes.

People in communities have common purposes because they have the
same wants. This may not at first seem to be true.

COMMON PURPOSES DUE TO COMMON WANTS

If we visit a large city, we see throngs of people hurrying hither
and thither, jostling one another, apparently in the greatest
confusion. We wonder where they are all going, what they are
doing, what they are seeking. In rural communities or in small
towns there is less apparent confusion than in the bustling life
of the city. Yet even here it is not always easy to see common
purposes and common interests. Whether in large or small
communities, we are more likely to be impressed by the VARIETY of
men's wants and even by the CONFLICT of their purposes.

But no matter how numerous and conflicting our wants may seem,