Breach of Trust - Part 1

Do you ever think about what it takes to make a civilization function?  To prosper?  Is it possible to boil it down to a one-word concept?  It think maybe it is.  The more I think about it, the more convinced I am that the necessary ingredient is trust.  Think about the implications of that notion.  What would life be like if we truly had trust in each other?  What would it be like if you knew another person always intended to do the right thing?  Forget whether or not he was capable of understanding what the right thing was.  Let's assume as a society we still have the same intelligence levels as now, the same skill levels, the same foolishness levels, the same error levels and the like.  If, in spite of all that, you could still trust that other people's intentions were to do the right thing and to be truthful with each other, how different would our society be?

Imagine what politics might be like if we trusted that our political opponents meant us no ill will - that they were working in good faith to do what they believed was best for the country.  Imagine if they believed that even though you differed from them, you meant them no harm either.  Wouldn't it make a difference if the other side, even though they believed you to be wrong, understood your motives to be pure?  Would they respond differently if you believed their motives were pure?

Think about our legal system.  How many laws would we need if we knew that our fellow citizens were not going to try to take unfair advantage of us?  I would argue not very many - laws aren't necessary where people willingly do the right thing.  How different would our country be if we didn't have to worry about lawsuits - neither frivolous suits because people just didn't file them nor sincere suits since those we harmed in some way knew we would make it right?  How many prisons would be required for a people who were committed not to harm others?  How many police would we need?

What about business?  What if you knew that the business from which you were buying would not charge unreasonable profits?  What if you knew that they believed whatever they told you about their products?  What if you knew they would fix any issues you had with what they sold you?  What if that merchant knew you'd never try to cheat them or lie about a return?  What if they knew you intended to pay them them a fair price for their product or service?  That you would pay them on time and that your check would not bounce?  We would see the end of contracts, would we not?

  

I think about relationships.  Imagine if a woman knew that any man interested in her would not intentionally hurt or harm her.  What if a man could believe any woman he might be getting to know better would genuinely desire what was in his best interests.  That any person who committed to a lifetime of marriage meant it.  What if every child knew that their parents only wanted their best and would never selfishly manipulate them.   What if every parent knew their child wanted nothing from them but a good relationship?

Does all of this sound ridiculous?  Impossible?  Why?  Maybe it's because we know our own natures too well - that we don't always have others' best interests in mind.  Maybe we know that we normally have our own best interests in mind.  Maybe because our experience tells us societal trust has broken down and is getting worse. Think about how our society has aligned in different and distrusting camps:  black vs. white, rich vs. poor, Democrat vs. Republican, male vs. female, gay vs. straight, east vs. west, rural vs. urban.  The dipoles are endless.  

It is mind-boggling how much our society would be transformed if we simply trusted each other.  Maybe experience teaches us that genuine trust is just too far from reality to ever hope for.  Does it have to be this way?  In Part 2, I’ll look at what I believe is the root of our breakdown of societal trust, as well as an answer to turn it around.

Link to Part 2