This might belong in GD, and if it does, I appologize in advance.
I was just having a discussion over politics with a friend of mine, and it branched out into the fact that, at the moment, we live in a very cynical and distrustful age in general. I know it is easy to get nostalgic and have ‘selective amnesia’ about certain things, but I also remember people being, well, more trustful when I was younger.
What the point of this post is- what can people do to make this a more trustworthy age? I mean at a personal level. “Make the politician stop lying” is a nice goal, but hardly one that joe (or arrr) average can do. What I’m looking for is ideas that we can implement on a one-person level to help out… Even in small ways.
Why should we want to? What some might call “cynical and distrustful”, I see as “questioning and sceptical”. I think it’s a good thing that people no longer blindly swallow whatever they are handed from on high, but actually have the wherewithal to question things.
ArrMatey, how old are you, if you don’t mind my asking? I have a hard time imagining a world where the “common folk” didn’t think that the politicians–be they presidents, noblemen, kings, etc–were mostly looking out for their own selfish interests.
On a personal level, I try to be very trustworthy myself. I want to be someone that others can trust and rely on. I don’t know what I can do to influence things on a larger scale, though. Frankly, most public figures haven’t some themselves worthy of my trust.
I’m 33. I guess, however, the general consensus I’m getting from the (albiet few) posts on this thread is that we are cynical and distrustful because we’d rather -be- cynical and distrustful. Is this the case?
My guess is that you remember people being more trusting when you were younger because that was the case with the particular people you associated with when you were younger. As we grow older, we should grow smarter and learn that not everyone is to be trusted.
There’s a thread recently, for example, where a person learned not to trust somebody who says the used car is in good shape. He is now just a little less trusting than he was before, and this is a good thing.
There have always been experienced people who know that some used car sellers lie, and that some politicians are not really interested in the public welfare, and that a few doctors are quacks. And that being nice to others doesn’t mean they’ll be nice back, and that the company you work for is not interested in your well-being, either, but in making a profit. You and your contemporaries are joining those ranks, that’s all.
Well, IF we live in a more distrustful age, maybe it’s because of media saturation. With so many media outlets in need of stories, some percentage of those stories will be revealing lies, scandals, scams, frauds, etc.
Therefore we are all hearing more stories of the gullible ripped off. Therefore we are more likely to want to avoid being gullible and are, hence, more distrustful.
I absolutely hate hate shows like Candid Camera and Crank Yankers. They just increase the feeling that the world is always waiting to take advantage of you if only for a laugh.
All I can offer in the “what can we do” line is Be very trustworthy yourself.