Questions & Answers
I am often asked questions about Goodbye Trust. These are the most popular.
In two sentences why should I buy the book?
When we lose trust in institutions, society polarises, we become unhappy, and our quality of life suffers. Knowing why it’s happening will not solve the problem, but understanding is power and having power is good.
What is trust?
Trust is the belief in the reliability, integrity and honesty of someone or something. It involves a sense of confidence that they will act as expected or promised, giving us a sense of security and predictability.
Why are we so obsessed with woke?
The word has become a catch-all term for what a substantial section of society sees as being wrong with the world. It includes everything from the obsession with political correctness to the bending of the rules to help favoured groups and disadvantage the majority. Woke is an easy term for the media to use as clickbait to generate traffic by highlighting extreme examples or controversies.
What shocked you the most?
Before I wrote the book I retained an idealised view of academia. I wasn’t naïve about their failings, having worked in universities, but I thought they were a positive force for good in society. I no longer hold this view. I believe them to be fatally flawed in how they operate.
Did any of the findings amuse you?
I was unsure how the essay about politics and government would evolve. The more I wrote the more the parallels emerged between politicians and showbiz. I had long doubted politicians’ ability to deliver on their promises. Now I am certain that much of what occurs is pure theatre. It’s a theatre we enjoy and collude with, mostly for the amusement value.
Is it all doom and gloom?
Despite the plague of doom and gloom that has infected so much of the Western world, many aspects of our lives are better than ever. Yes, we have huge problems with our institutions, but they are solvable. Making things better can only start once there is widespread agreement about the problems. The elites that govern the institutions are in denial about their failures. They are the problem, not the enablers to putting things right.
Surely, we must trust somebody?
Much to my amazement, business is the one group that has retained trust. Having spent my life working in the corporate world, I find this astonishing. I guess its customers’ wants and beliefs constrain companies from indulging its prejudices.
Who do we trust the least?
Politicians and the media are at the bottom of our trust ladder, with ‘experts’ diving to join them.