Why We Trust (Not really) but Verify
I really don't like the phrase "trust but verify". It is a waste of energy to verify all the time. I just think it is sad that there is so much misinformation out there, that we don't just automatically trust, we have to verify.
I have to say that I am far from perfect in having people trust what I say and not having to verify. For example, I currently have a casserole dish in my car since Thanksgiving that I am going to return to my girlfriend every night. Now, I am not trying to deceive my friend when I tell her again, "Are you going to be home tonight because I am dropping your casserole dish off?", that is really my intention, but, well, it still is in my car. The sad thing is that I should feel truly quilty but I don't. We live in a time where the truth is "fluid" I don't know how we got to this place but this is the place where we are at.
You probably have examples in your life that you don't even realize. I have been trying to book my booster shot and have been told to book online and given a website address. I go to that website and am instructed to book by phone and provided a number to do so. I call the number and receive a recorded message to go book on the website. This is just one of the reasons why we have a hard time trusting government agencies and personnel.
I just read a touching story about a tragic death of a man who died of an overdose after seriously trying to get help for about six months before his death. We are being led to believe that "help is available" when we are also hearing stories that not only is it not necessarily available but to access this help is next to impossible. In my family, we are trying to access services to help one of our own. We have been carefully trying to do what we are told but that seems to change from one day to another and one person tells us to zig while the next tells us we should have zagged. You almost need a Masters in Organizational Management to navigate the system; which is ironic because if you had a Masters in Organizational Management, you wouldn't need the services that you are trying to access.
I am trying to transfer a locked-in retirement account from one financial institution to another. Essentially, I want all of my funds to be managed by my financial planner. I have been actively trying to do this since September and all I have been able to accomplish is that I don't believe anything I am told. Essentially, a former employer has allegedly not told the pension fund manager that my employment status is "former". I don't know why, since I quit in 2019 that this is so difficult, but apparently it is. I could accept that this is extremely difficult but what is frustrating me is that so many people have told me so many different stories that have turned out not to be accurate.
I understand the concept of "someone screwed up at some point and we can't change the past, so let's move to correct this." There appears to be some communication issues between the two organizations, which each blaming each other, and expecting me to fix it when I don't even know what the issue is. My former employer keeps insisting I haven't resigned and I am still working there. It is harder than you think to prove that I am no longer working for them. They can't trust me, they have to verify. I have been told atleast ten times that this has been resolved only to be told that it hasn't. It is impossible for anyone to copy me on any email so I have to trust but not verify and that hasn't worked well so far. But, what am I complaining about, I am only on my third month of trying to resolve this.
It is just sad that our society has adopted a trust but verify philosophy. We should be able to just trust each other. Wouldn't that be simpler? Wouldn't that allow us to use our "verifying" efforts into something more productive.
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