If you can't trust, you can't be trusted

We as a society have an issue with trust.  By an issue with trust, I really mean that we have none.  Now... I am not one to make broad claims like these out of nowhere (unless I'm trying to get a rise out of someone... but being that this is a blog and I can't see you, the reader, getting noticeably angry, there really is no point).  Anyway, we don't trust each other.  Allow me to provide an apt anecdote:

Last Sunday (a week ago today), I stepped out my door with my dog at around 10 pm.  Walking down the sidewalk, I noticed a person carrying a small child.  My first impression was, "this is kind of sketchy."  Not an uncommon reaction for south Minneapolis at night.  I continue my walk, Yuki does her business, and to my surprise a woman asks me where the park is.  Well, the woman was the person I saw earlier and I directed her toward the park.  Before I could continue with any more of a reaction, she informed me that she had lost her car after she and her daughter attended the May Day Festival at Powderhorn Park.  The first words out of my mouth were that I would help her look (what can I say, I have a soft spot for children and being a knight in shining armor).  We walked about 10 blocks before I told her that she and her daughter should come back to my place and stay with my neighbor while I drive and look (she had been walking about for two hours at this point).

I found her vehicle quickly (I had been doing some heavy thinking about where it could be... turns out I was right).  I drove them to the car and her final statement was, "that it is so great that I found a seemingly trustworthy person to help out."  Now, before I get into all the jazz of my post, I just want to say that I wasn't disappointed by that statement and this woman is taking me out to dinner with her and her daughter to thank me.  However, that last statement she made really spoke to me about our society.  We have a tendency to assume the worst in others (specifically strangers) and we're all guilty.  In the beginning of my little anecdote, my first thought about this woman and her child was, "sketchy."  I'm not saying we should not be cautious, but who knows how long this woman would have been looking for her car if she hadn't taken a chance with me.

Unfortunately, this post is not a "here's a problem and fix it post."  Chances are you can't just walk out your front door and start fixing the trust-your-neighbor problem (only I have those mad skills).  Ultimately, we waste a lot of time fearing and distrusting people we don't even know.  Take for instance the constant claims from politicians that the other side is interested in the downfall of the country.  Worst yet is that shit plays really well with a lot of voters.  Time to get over it.