Whatever Happened To Honesty?

[newboy 4919]

It seems to me that these days so many persons are have their own agenda. I wonder what ever happened to true honesty, where we could trust eveyone, and not worry about if they were lying to us, or out for their own benefit and to heck with everyone else. Will those days ever return?

[antlerman 17064]

I have some land in Florida or a bridge for sale in New York...... I even have the papers for setting up toll booths on the bridge to make your money back in 2 years ...... And it is cheap

 

Trust me.......honestly.. ....would i mislead you?

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[billybob 20128]

I have no idea what you are talking about, please explain.

[Meg O'Ryan 266444]

PLEASE....when you discover the cure (the cure that makes liers melt into nothingness) let me know cause I hate no one unless I find out that they maliciously lie (let's face it a lie isn't that bad if there is no nefarious intent)

[MightyPen 67414]

It seems to me that these days so many persons are have their own agenda. I wonder what ever happened to true honesty, where we could trust eveyone, and not worry about if they were lying to us, or out for their own benefit and to heck with everyone else. Will those days ever return?

Were there ever such days? After age 4, I mean? (And even then there was an agenda -- we just couldn't possibly be aware of it.)

 

I knew very few people who are completely honest, and very few people who are out for themselves and screw everybody else. Just about everyone I know falls somewhere in the middle, and I try to spend time with the more-honest people among them.

[Athos 108589]

Honesty is definitely in the eye of the beholder. Don't really think there ever was such a day.

 

And let's face it, if it wasn't for outright lying, or at least some very big sins of omission, most of the ladies on this board would be out of business, cause the clients would have been killed by wives and girlfriends. So here's to a little creative distortion!

 

Porthos

[crankF 12893]

Honesty is definitely in the eye of the beholder. Don't really think there ever was such a day.

 

And let's face it, if it wasn't for outright lying, or at least some very big sins of omission, most of the ladies on this board would be out of business, cause the clients would have been killed by wives and girlfriends. So here's to a little creative distortion!

 

Porthos

The ladies commit sins of omission. The gents are guilty of omission, and they hope to also be guilty of Emission.

 

Additional Comments:

It seems to me that these days so many persons are have their own agenda. I wonder what ever happened to true honesty, where we could trust eveyone, and not worry about if they were lying to us, or out for their own benefit and to heck with everyone else. Will those days ever return?

Decades ago when I was small,it seems like, there really was a bit more "true honesty", and personal agendas over all else were not quite as prevalent. Back then my parents didn't have to lock the door at night, but that practice is about as likely to return as true honesty. Too bad.

[billybob 20128]

backrubman: And I have no idea why you have no idea :)

 

What? I don't understand your comment. Clearly from your posts you are a stud who juggles multiple ladies and situations, I bow to you.

 

My question was as innocent as the OP's question.

 

It seems to me that these days so many persons are have their own agenda. I wonder what ever happened to true honesty, where we could trust eveyone, and not worry about if they were lying to us, or out for their own benefit and to heck with everyone else. Will those days ever return?

 

 

I truly did/do not get what the OP is getting to. There has never been a time where we could trust everyone in my opinion. People have always been deceitful so I don't understand the OP's point.

[backrubman 64800]

I truly did/do not get what the OP is getting to. There has never been a time where we could trust everyone in my opinion. People have always been deceitful so I don't understand the OP's point.

 

I have to agree with that billybob, there have always been snake oil salesmen around in one form or another but it seems people used to be more honest and dishonesty and deceit has become more the order of the day. Consider this little true story:

 

Ok, so we've all had that stray rock strike our windshield on the highway and whap! and then it cracks and spreads and we get a new windshield and as it's like $400 we just pay by credit card. The glass shop is great, highly skilled, but technologically primitive and has a credit card impression machine with the little carbon copy slips. Months go by, more months go by, but oddly we haven't seen the charge on the credit card statement. Hmmm (guess this should be in the thread of things that make you go Hmmm), I wonder if that $400 charge for the new windshield will ever show up? It's been like 6 months. So passing by the auto glass store on my way to the office one morning I stop in and explain the situation, that I had my windshield replaced, paid by credit card and it has never shown up on the credit card statement, did the charge not go through? Was the impression of my credit card not clear enough? What is the problem? The owner is in "shock"! Like why are you here man? What in the world do you want from me? So I explain, I want only to make sure you get your money. I can't in good conscience drive around with a new windshield I haven't paid for. As it turns out the credit card impression wasn't good enough, the bank rejected it, they hadn't recorded my address or license number and had no way of contacting me, so of course I paid for the windshield, the owner then had to shake my hand and congratulate me for being the last honest person left in the world and I was on my way to the office again. $400 is a lot of money for a small business like this to have to absorb as a loss. As I travel along the highway I come upon a horrible "black ice" style of accident that had happened about 20 minutes before with lots of cars and carnage involved. Of course I see the flashing lights of the emergency vehicles and slow right down and pass by with that icky feeling we always get but then I realize that it all happened 20 minutes ago and that's just about exactly how long I spent at the auto glass shop. Hmmm

 

So why did he think I was the last honest person left in the world? Yeah, people that expect to get something for nothing or lack morals are more common these days. I know my parents would do the same, I know many people today that would think they got a free windshield and actually be gleefully pleased to have made like a bandit.

 

Hope that helps!

[roamingguy 300291]

Clearly we are not all 100% honest. I mean, me as a single guy still has family obligations (elderly mother) so I find myself being voluntold LOL to visit, not just to visit, but some things we take for granted (changing lightbulbs in ceiling lights for example) she can't do without major risk to herself of falling down. Point is, I plan my encounters way ahead of time, that way I know I have a free weekend to see a lady. But I don't tell family members where I'm going, I make up a story, usually I'm fishing that weekend, or seeing friends. Am I dishonest

I go to work Monday morning, after a weekend encounter. Co-workers ask

what did you do on the weekend...you know, usual Monday morning conversation. Should I be completely honest, and say where I was, and who I saw, or be discrete. Likewise, should ladies be completely honest, and say who they saw, or likewise be discrete.

When it comes to matters of money/honesty I'm honest. I've been given too much change, but I count it and return the extra. I once was in a assignment at work, paid more, but circumstances cancelled the assignment early. My boss for that assignment was going to keep me on the books for the full duration of the assignment, just so I'd get higher pay for 6 more months. But I declined, saying I was back in my substantive job, and not earning the higher pay.

Basically at the end of the day, you can't change the world. All you can do is be the best person you can be. Just be the best you can be and accept that there are others that are dishonest. But for those who are honest, just continue to be honest, you can only change yourself, not everyone else

RG

[CristyCurves 169032]

Perhaps this person is speaking from his own experiences and disappointed by his contact with so many dishonest people. When people lie they lie no matter what their intent, it's a lie, an untruth. Most of us would prefer to hear the truth.

There was a time if you listen to your grandparents and for some, parents, when people could leave their cars unlocked, their homes and you could do business with a handshake, neighbours helped each other and so did some strangers with no expectations or agendas. Perhaps he was speaking of those days, my grandmother would attest to those"good ole days".

[Kyra.Graves 23779]

We are evolved to lie and we all do it, it's something that has benefited our species for a very long time and I suspect you'd have a hard time going back far enough to find the "good ole' days" when humans didn't lie if it ever existed at all.

 

http://simbio.com/blog/post/language-lying-and-evolution

 

http://www.forbes.com/2005/10/19/lying-dishonesty-psychology_cx_lr_comm05_1024lie.html

[backrubman 64800]

There was a time if you listen to your grandparents and for some, parents, when people could leave their cars unlocked, their homes and you could do business with a handshake, neighbours helped each other and so did some strangers with no expectations or agendas. Perhaps he was speaking of those days, my grandmother would attest to those"good ole days".

 

And there was a time when a church would always be open and anyone could enter at any time to say a prayer. This is still true in much of the 3rd world but all the churches where I live are locked until someone opens it before a service and they all need burglar alarms.

 

Maybe this is a symptom of some of the changes in our society. Who would ever burglarize a church? I think drugs, poor parenting, television violence, video game violence and many other factors have changed this generations sense of values and ethics.

[Chanel Reign 28097]

I think that TG is basically asking where did honesty go in our culture. Honesty is a very cheap commodity these days as a whole. Our culture allows and indeed embraces a less honest way of life. It's easier.

 

But is it? Our children are growing up to believe this. Anyone under 30 has been exposed to this culture. All one has to do is turn on the television, listen to a politician (who is expected to lie), or read a magazine (10 ways to cheat on your income tax).

 

My view is that I choose to live in a world where honesty is still prevalent, although not always present. I am not a fool and cant be snowed that easily, so I choose to use my feet/ears and walk/stop listening. I find it much easier to believe people than always be suspicious of everything they say. If it's a lie and not hurting me, I don't care because it reflects on that person, and not me.

 

And I don't lie. It's too hard to remember so I see no point. Unless I know it will hurt someone, then I re-think what I am going to say.

[crankF 12893]

And there was a time when a church would always be open and anyone could enter at any time to say a prayer. This is still true in much of the 3rd world but all the churches where I live are locked until someone opens it before a service and they all need burglar alarms.

 

Maybe this is a symptom of some of the changes in our society. Who would ever burglarize a church? I think drugs, poor parenting, television violence, video game violence and many other factors have changed this generations sense of values and ethics.

I have lived most of my life in a very small town and still belong to the same church. At the entrance to the church office there is an enclosed alcove where we could sneak out of the weather and partake of the herb. That was decades ago,but recently they started finding used rubbers and syringes almost every morning. Now the alcove has a locked door, and all existing locks doubled as well. Sad commentary imho.

[renegade 11027]

I grew up when doors were unlocked cars left their windows open and schools accepted religion and patriotism, we said the lords prayer and sang "o Canada" and there was nothing wrong about it. Policemen were your friend and you looked up to politicians,lawyers helped people and the news was unbiased and honest. Fear was not a constant, you looked forward, the glass always half full.You conversed with people and actually were interested in what they had to say and you admired the successful and wanted to imitate them.Being successful was not frowned upon or denigrated as it seems to be today.To lie was not acceptable and those caught lying were chastised it was frowned upon. Today lying is an "art" practiced by far too many its no longer frowned upon and we accept untruths as long as the news media, politicians,lawyers or law enforcement "spin" it the right way . Wall street, Main street, governments or unions and especially the Media all put their agenda,s ahead of any moral obligation to tell the truth. Yet i still feel hope, even here, where the majority of us on this board have something to hide-their remains the ability, in my humble opinion,that the members here tend to be more truthful and honest than those in the so called open society.

[Kubrickfan 12836]

It seems to me that these days so many persons are have their own agenda. I wonder what ever happened to true honesty, where we could trust eveyone, and not worry about if they were lying to us, or out for their own benefit and to heck with everyone else. Will those days ever return?

 

Never existed. People will necessarily, and almost always, act out of some degree of self-interest. Nothing wrong with that as long as its balanced with a sense of morality (which is usually where the problems are).

[Phaedrus 209521]

I don't think that either the world or the people in it have become much worse. But the world has become much smaller, with two consequences that lead to a greater perception of it.

 

Firstly, we now encounter far more people than we did back in the days when many would have been born, lived and died in the same community. That means that it's easier to flee a bad reputation. The unethical can screw a few people over and move on in a way that simply wasn't possible in the past. I don't think that means that more people are dishonest than before... just that we're likely to run into more of them.

 

Secondly, communications have become much better, and we're all under the microscope a lot more. We hear about crimes on the other side of the country (or even the other side of town) that we wouldn't have known about in the past... and the reaction is to lock our doors and keep our kids inside. And politicians find it harder to get away with the kind of back-room deals and nepotism and old-boys networks that have always existed. We find out about it, these days, whereas in the past we just didn't.

[nntsci 11076]

Is there a particular reason you are upset about honesty. I don't think there is any more or less honest around. Some truths are best left unsaid. Sometimes people don't want to know all the truth. Can you imagine a world without lies; how boring and cold it would be (see the Invention of Lying... a very funny movie).