During the course of my lifetime I have noticed a terrible de-socializing pattern.
It is causing social decay, too much legislation, too much law enforcement, a reluctance to become friends and form lasting relationships, the elimination of the concept of giving anyone, personal or institutional, the 'benefit of the doubt'.
We have, as a world, as a species and as a society been consistently losing our trust in each other.
That is tragedy of catastrophic proportions
Firstly, trust, once lost, is very, very hard to restore. And secondly, distrust, in and of itself is a self-fulfilling prophesy. If we don't trust, we take pre-emptive action defensively -- we act cynical, skeptical, and ultimately call that same behavior forth in some multiple from others. It's not "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you." -- It has become "Do it to others before they do it to you." ...as if others, without restriction or qualification, invariably would seek to hurt or harm.
Distrust breeds distrust. And the expectation of distrust and of being cheated brings out the very worst conduct in people.
Trust is the foundation upon which all relationships are built. As our ability (and reason!) to trust has deteriorated, so too has virtually every other aspect of society, and of the benefits of its cohesiveness, supportiveness and synergy.
The question is: How can we restore trust, and restore one of the most precious elements of the very quality of our lives' experience?
The most I can hope to do as an individual Human Being, is to be trustworthy -- and to practice it in my life as if it were religion. Perhaps my example might persuade others to be trustworthy. Perhaps we could all drop our shields a bit and become more trusting.
What if we were all to do this? Could we create a positive outward-whirling viral spiral?
Douglas E. Castle
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