What the heck is Public Trust?

So I promised to write a post about Public Trust... but what is it really? I could get into a boring rant about social capital and cohesion, about building a sense of community and teaching each other about the priorities of humankind... but see, you're asleep already.

I think the Public Trust has at least as much to do with the tiny, seemingly insignificant daily interactions we all have with one another as much as any grandiose philosophy. Some examples?

• The bus driver on the #4 taking one of my tickets and giving it to an old lady who lost one of hers (note: he let me get on the bus too!).
• My swimming classmates encouraging me to dive off the block as I shook in terror.
• The girl at the Y loaning me a padlock for free because I forgot mine at home.
• The guy in line at the grocery store today letting me go ahead of him with my small basket of stuff.
• My neighbour fixing my door with bike lube at 10pm.

Public trust is when you don't have to sit in front of the clothes dryer for an hour because you know that no-one will swipe your stuff. It's paying back loans promptly and returning favours. It's counting on the innate goodness and character of your fellow man. It's realizing that we're all in this game together folks; our futures are intertwined.

Can I say that this Public Trust has declined over the last decade? Century? I really don't know. Social cohesion may tend to be stronger in smaller, self-sustained communities, and according to Robert Putnam (whose book "Bowling Alone" has provided me with much fodder for writing over the years), the North American infatuation with the boob tube is one of the root causes of our modern discontent.

So turn off the TV and hug your kids...
...Or your gf/bf.
...or your dog/cat.
... or your bike.