Why have people lost their trust in each other?

Question

I've been noticing that after the pandemic , people have become more aggressive and have lost their trust in other people. Why had this happened? Why people changed so much only for 2 years?

NamerOfStars · Accepted Answer

We staged a multi-society-wide Milgram experiment, and almost every last ONE of us failed miserably. It's not so much that fear conquered their hearts as it is that they surrendered them without a fight. We saw, firsthand, what most people will do if they feel (not, think, FEEL; it was held to long after the lack of danger became clear) that they risk death or social disapproval. Blood ties and history mean NOTHING when fear runs the show. I was driven a thousand miles away from everything and everyone I knew and loved. In terms of Twilight Zone episodes, it wasn't so much "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street" as "The Shelter", but the lesson came across quite clearly nonetheless.

The one real upside is that people who used to wonder what they'd do if they were in Germany when the Nazis came to power now know. Few will admit it, but they know.

One of the saddest aspects is that those who fell short won't see it as a motivation to change. Twenty years ago, in the runup to the US invasion of Iraq, the support of the war was about 50/50 among the population. Those of us who paused to think about it realized it was a mistake (though, in fairness, how BIG a mistake it would turn out to be wasn't immediately apparent; at least if you weren't an expert on the political realities of the Middle East); we were shouted down as "opposing freedom". Nowadays, you'd be hard-pressed to find ANYONE who admits to having supported the war- even if you show them the emails and text messages they sent, clearly showing themselves as having been strongly in favor. In 2040, we're going to see no shortage of people claiming they were "against all that nonsense from the very beginning", even when shown video footage of them screaming at someone for not wearing one of those stupid masks. The core idea is the same, but there's a world of difference between the theoretical people being blasted apart by bombs and bullets and the concrete YOU being threatened and beaten and refused access to grocery stores and jobs.

Bluntly, why WOULDN'T we have lost our faith in each other?

caring__1 · Accepted Answer

Picture this. You go to the beach and grab a handful of sand and notice it is coming out between your fingers. You squeeze tighter to hold onto it, and it comes out faster.

When we feel scared and out of control, we often grab at over-controlling whatever is around us. Our fears are based on what is unknown to us, and there has been a lot of unknown. As we eliminate the unknown, we eliminate the fears. Until that unknown is resolved, people tend to be more forceful in pushing their agenda onto others... to legitimize what they believe is true. The more people they can convince to buy into their belief, the more they can convince themselves they chose the right belief.

It's hard to trust people when people keep manufacturing "facts" to legitimize what they believe. Who do you trust? How can you be sure? This exasperates people who just want to reclaim comfort in their life. When scared, people take things to extremes, so everyone becomes adversaries rather than allies. People end up isolating themselves with those who are like-minded, resulting in others being unknown and scary. The more we stick with our own kind (which people often feel a need to do in a hostile environment), the more fearful we become of those who are different. The pandemic has isolated people, only speeding up and intensifying this process.

Haha456 · Accepted Answer

I will tell you why:

1. A classmate offered to let me practice taking her blood pressure on her after class. I confirmed with her two times. 1 hr later i approached her after class and she acted as if she didn't know what I was asking for and said she was gonna be busy. If you don't want to do something, don't offer it.

2. I meet someone from a dating app. we talk for two days. we agree to meet this Saturday at 3pm. At 1:00 pm, when I'm all dressed and ready to head out the door, I texted him and he never responds. At 2:30 when I am driving to the location, he finally tells me that he is not meeting up today because he has a lot of work at his job. if you wanted to cancel a date, why not tell me at a decent time?

3. I have an acquaintance who promised me that we would go on a road trip together next Saturday and that we will confirm the rest of the details regarding car, hotel room a few days later. It endd up that he never texted me back about it. Next Saturday rolls around and there was complete silence. No word from him. No cancellations.

4. Sometimes I would text someone in a conversation and they would just end the conversation by not responding. NO goodbye, no see ya later, no talk to you next time.

5. I would invite someone I met at a social event to bowling. They text me an hour prior to the bowling game that they weren't going to come. why would you agree to go bowling with me if you are just gonna cancel on me last minute? I re-arranged my entier work schedule so that I could go bowling with you.

as you can see right here, this is why I have lost trust in people. I no longer make friends with anyone in my city. nyc. everyone here is an asshole

misfittoy · Accepted Answer

because there is very little compassion and loyalty left. the pandemic brought out peoples real self and most showed the world for who they are, not very nice people

Guy13 · Answer

It is a sad thing for sure.

MrOracle · Answer

This was absolutely intentional. The current government in power has been working to divide the populace in every way possible - that's what these accusations of racism and sexism and all the identity politics is all about - fracturing the population. Why? Because they don't want the population to be able to fight - or even NOTICE - the REAL divide: the wealthy, ruling elite vs. everyone else. That's the only divide that matters.

The current thinking of the ruling elite is that the world is far too overpopulated, and so they are pushing ideas at every level that discourages marriage and children and encourages abortion, euthanasia, war, and food shortages - all of which will lead to significantly reduced population. Let me put that another way: they want YOU and I to DIE, so they have more resources and luxuries for themselves. That's not hyperbole - a few of them have come right out and said so, in places where they felt safe to speak freely.

If there were no other conflicts to pay attention to, people might actually pay attention to the government planning the deaths of their own citizens, and they can't have that. If they encourage tons of other distractions - most of which are manufactured - then they're free to do what they like in the background.

Bill Gates and other billionaires, as well as huge mega-corps, are buying up farmland like crazy, all over the world. Why? Because if they own it, they can simply stop farming on that land. Of course, they'll create a reason - climate change or soil management or something - but you can't just go farm somewhere else. The best farmland is the best farmland because of the soil and weather conditions, and you can't just move your farm from the Plains to the mountains, or to the forest. Food prices will skyrocket, and people will starve - but the elites won't suffer a day. YOU WILL. And maybe you are tough and strong and you might survive - but will your parents? Your grandparents? Your young children? Almost certainly, people you care about will die - and people's panic over a lack of food will cause further conflicts in which others will die. LOTS of others. Are you prepared to steal, or even kill, to keep your family alive? Are your neighbors prepared to do the same?

Imagine a world that's like the aftermath of a natural disaster, with food and supply shortages everywhere, except it's global and it extends for 9 months. No food at the store, no toilet paper, no tampons, no baby formula, no alcohol, no cigarettes, no Uber Eats, no open restaurants, etc. Imagine that going on for 9 or 12 or 18 months - worldwide. What do you think happens then?

CaptainOverthink · Answer

I'd say overall it differs between countries and the local population-density. My awnser to this question is aimed to include the broader perspective and to shallow touch on the complexity of society. It's rarely a simple equation.

in my opinion, this has more to do with a shifting culture than it has with the pandemic in particular, but the pandemic surely did escalate some bad things and was a wakeup-call to some good things.

Technology skews our perspective and the culture we create around it makes the real world distant and seemingly more dangerous.
Technology, specificly social media:
- The ease of circumventing encounters with other people through apps and ease of accsess habituates us to talk less face-to-face, reduces our social skill and our empathy towards people and also puts us in a comfortzone to keep it that way.
- The way social media algorythms chase our engagement and how we naturally as humans select for negative content over positive skews our view of the world and it's political landscape.
- Because we no longer are dependant on physical newsletters and in turn how the incentives of news-organisations had to change to survive economically (snd how they are failing at that).. they turned into attentionwhores rather than couriers of valuable and accurate information. This shift and escalation made us (rightfully but worringly) much more mistrusting of the news.
- How peace-times has made us lax in thinking we are above our own nature because we are 'civilized'. And how wrong we are to take the systems we work under in society for granted and mess with too much too fast without fully understanding the long-term consequences.

All these things and more cause society to be unsure of the future, unsure of in who to trust, of how other people think, of what to expect.

The solution?
We must all start with ourselves to try to be more positive, helping, social, forgving and understanding. Only when we start with ourselves do we together and apart give the community a reason to follow suit.
Problem is most of the time all we do is preach.

BlueScorpio · Answer

Because the damn media made sure that people stay afraid of any kind of contact cause of the the constant fear mongering about c19. Trust me after two years of what we went through, I understand people want to be stay safe and not get sick. But it's really made some people become over the top paranoid germophobes that will freak out the moment they see any one let out a deep breath.

It's was another strategy test out just to see how far they could with it, America is already heavily divided over politics and when this virus came about it caused even a bigger division. You had people coming up to strangers screaming about a mask and then you had people screaming at the other about personal choice etc. It was a hot mess.

But besides the pandemic people are more fearful of others cause, unfortunately, people hurt or disappoint people. Thr news is constantly on about all the violence that goes on here inour country and around the world so now people are a lot more edge around strangers.

PetiteBabe64 · Answer

People have Done lost Faith in the Good people of Society that Don’t do anything good for people a long time ago. People will continue to lose Faith in people until nobody Has faith in anybody anymore and eventually Females stop Having kids.
Dudes already created a Group Think that Tells them to not Have kids that it’s a bad idea that nothing good will come of Being in a relationship and they call it waking up. More and more Men are waking up to the truth until eventually no man will Even touch a lady because of the Fear of Drama and or disease 🦠 everything has a beginning middle and ending. One day no person will have kids anymore and We will be the last people.
There could be a revolution where men decide to take all the females and make Them Unable to get pregnant ensuring No baby is ever born ever again and if a baby is born Men could Kill the baby because men could decide this is the end and no more will people Come into existence. Anything is possible only takes 1 person to start something up and the Herd follows until it becomes a Revolution.

D_Bone_Steak · Answer

Divide them. Easier to conquer and to control.

Even if you're more intelligent and can see what's going on, you still got to deal with the majority of those around you just eating up false narratives and things you'd wish they'd just question a little bit more.

At the same time conflict isn't exactly what I want with the majority of people. So they start blurting out woke bullshit, I just try to STFU and back out of the room, sigh, and take a few gulps of my drink. Look up to the stars and just wonder if this shit is ever going to stop.

HighValue · Answer

One reason was the online distance learning where parents finally realized the dishonest, abusive, liberal, racist, trans agenda that some teachers/schools were pushing onto their kids.

Schools were supposed to be a more trusted institution, but when people figured out that their kids were actually being mentally, emotionally, and physically abused and harmed by some schools, it broke their trust in many people and society.

Another reason is that liberals supported criminals, supported violence against Whites and Asians, supported robbery, looting, and arson, all while defunding police and the police being cowards that listened to their mayors and let innocent people die.

Some people finally realized that much of society is immoral, completely untrustworthy, hates them just for existing as a good person, and it is pretty much up tp them to fend for themselves.

Much of society and people are trash.

hafinjun · Answer

That's a really good question, personally, I think we were already well down that path. The virus isolated us for over a year, which allowed the situation to strengthen. We barely interact with each other now , In ten years we probably won't communicate personally at all.

Anonymous · Answer

It starts from the top the cream of the crop. The elites of the system, then royal families, the filthy rich (corporate CEO’s, etc.), the ideologies that make us hate and despise each other. The media on television, the movies, social media, the magazines can be toxic how we view others. This goes beyond the pandemic this has been happening for centuries but in particular in the modern era for decades. The worse is yet to come unfortunately. I do think we will witness another world war and economic crash which will perpetuate more hate.

Anonymous · Answer

Covid 19 exposed a lot of people for who they really are. There was no better experiment to test the morality of humankind than a pandemic. Turns out it was despicable. Instead of uniting against a mutual enemy ( the virus), and coming together, people just sought to malign their neighbors and everyone else over issues of masks and vaccines the first fucking opportunity they had. We couldn't wait to shit on others. It was ugly and it taught us what human beings really are: self-centered, self-righteous, coldhearted beings who deserve everything they have coming to them. If God ever decides to wipe us into oblivion and start anew, I wouldn't blame him at all. I'm surprised it hasn't happened yet.

bolverk · Answer

The pandemic has not helped, but it also depends where you live - in cities people are suspicious of those around them - whereas those in the countryside know their neighbours and rely on their help when ever there are problems as they cannot rely on any help from outside their local community.

Andres77 · Answer

Tolerance within society has decreased greatly with the push to demonize another sector of the populace. The government and politicians push this. Trying to keep the people divided instead of paying attention to what government is doing…both parties.

BLP11520 · Answer

People are scared, or uncertain about the future. People are retiring later. Inflation has slowed or stopped hobbies and fun. I think more people come home from work and just plop in front of TV or laptop. Laziness is everywhere. Companies cannot find people who WILL work. I am not as trusting as I used to be. People , not all, but people just want money from me. I know trust in gov"t agencies is gone.

FilmGuy93 · Answer

Umm… I would say It’s because they saw how people act under stress, if I really had to put my finger on it. They saw undependable their fellow man/woman really is. The pandemic was like a real life horror movie, and there’s always the spouse/partner in those movies that just totally drops the ball when others need them to step up.

AngelBritney · Answer

Life has become more unsatisfying, especially these days where everything has become much pricier and there is still the normal 40 hours a week job.

I noticed that it's rare that people say thank you these days. Or they are being rude and they see that it works to get what they want. (Both situations happened too often to me this year)

In retail I experienced how many sh*tty people are out there and it hasn't been better since then.

Tina19 · Answer

Because people have been betrayed in some or the other way too many scams happening around hence they feel unsafe to trust again

Anonymous · Answer

Gee, isn't that obvious what the pandemic and the quarantine has done to people?

Pleaznhim4me · Answer

Because most people are not trust worthy. The pandemic proved it by showing the true colors of many people in different positions in this world. Very sad really. Don’t forget who you are.

maalishka · Answer

Different opinios about vaccination and even know, after we got over quarantine and vaccines, people still judge others - plus when covid was huge, some people still didn't took it seriously and gave others covid, cause they didn't care to sit at home and get better.

Charlesbrandonf · Answer

People became more independent. Firstly we needed trust and safety to get along. Now everyone learned to be independent, minding their own life, and style. They’ve stopped socialising the way it use to be.

Rania05 · Answer

No idea, crazy shit happened during covid, but it had no effect on me except the habit of watching my hands at every little thing taking another level from before.

whirled_up_girl · Answer

I think a lot of people went into survival mode and felt that when all else fails the only person you can depend on is yourself.

Iron_Man · Answer

Because they are not grounded many people are out for themselves selfish people

Bethany22 · Answer

I think it's just confirmation bias. They were always aggressive before

DermalPunch · Answer

State-induced trauma-based mind control. Who's to say?

ZenJen444 · Answer

People have gone mad. Too much insanity going on in the world. I dont trust most people either. You don't know whose crazy or not.

dingdong331 · Answer

I think 🤔 isolation affects your health and wellbeing

Anonymous · Answer

I hear vaxed have become highly aggressive, thinking strange, something is wrong with many of them. Also 5G cells is harming people. Vaxed have a grim future... The future of this world is grim, depressing especially for vaxed.. 60% of earth... 😱

bethanl0u · Answer

I think people have a hard time trusting others because they’ve had bad experiences with trust in the past and they don’t want to go through that again

Anonymous · Answer

Financial upheaval. When you have Financial upheaval, social upheaval usually follows close behind.

Heolurt · Answer

People prove to me time and time again why I shouldn't trust anyone.

Fromdusktilldawn · Answer

Through bullying, fake friends

Jouth · Answer

because people fucking suck

dustybiker · Answer

Experience.

jimmy2 · Answer

I lost all trust in Democrats

eagle1951 · Answer

because the world sucks

Fuentes · Answer

Society

Anonymous · Answer

People have become more selfish these days

MiseriaCantareAFI · Answer

trump

Calenderagressive · Answer

They haven't

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