A lack of confidence - eroding confidence of the public in government institutions - Column

Among the various indices that measure everything from soup to nuts is that of consumer confidence. With the high employment rate and the long-reigning bull market, this has scored consistently strong. Yet, when it comes to confidence in various institutions, many Americans give them a flunking grade.

The Federal government candidly admits that it can't control waste in Medicare, Medicaid, welfare, food stamps, Social Security, and military spending. In nearly every project it undertakes, huge cost overruns are the norm, rather than the exception. AmTrack is just one glaring example. Begun in 1971, it has cost the government $17,000,000,000 to keep the railroad afloat.

The Drug Enforcement Administration, which has had more czars than post-World War II Italy had heads of government, has failed miserably and might be the best argument for drug legalization. The entire government bureaucracy seems like the result of crossing a cow with an octopus -- a creature able to milk itself! Anthony Lake, a onetime candidate for the head of the CIA, put it succinctly as he withdrew his nomination, declaring his entire experience in the process showed "a government gone haywire."

Habitual liars are not to be trusted, and that is the charge many make against government today. Mary Schiavano, former head of the Department of Transportation, accused the Federal Aviation Administration of deliberately misinforming the public about airline safety, and wrote a book, Flying Blind, to prove her point.

During Operation Desert Storm, the public was told with great fanfare about the incredible accuracy of the military's "smart bombs" and the huge success of the Patriot missiles against Iraq's SCUDs. Later claims were more sober and indicated that such praise was unjustified. No wonder the issue of Gulf War Syndrome can't be put to rest.

Not only secular institutions fail the confidence test. The Roman Catholic Church has had myriad scandals concerning pedophile priests. It tried to sweep the growing expose under the rug, but this just worsened the matter. One bishop even declared that, although he thought such unpriestly activity was morally abhorrent, he didn't believe it was legally wrong. Thus, he didn't report it!

The Pope's adamant position on birth control and refusal to recognize remarriage after divorce largely is ignored by the laity and many of the clergy as well. Moreover, the Pontiff continues to insist on a celibate priesthood, despite a drastic drop in vocations resulting in church closures and reductions of services. Some intellectuals claim the Church has lost its credibility. (One theologian explained that the wheels of the hierarchy grind slowly, as indicated by the fact that it took 300 years to wring out an apology for the condemnation of Galileo. Expectations are that it will take another three centuries to redress the present dogmatism.)

In 1997, Southern Baptists showed no lack of confidence in their organization as they continued the presidency of Rev. Henry Lyons, despite his being unable to explain away several funding scandals, including a house for a supposed paramour, expensive cars, and the niggardly distribution of a small part of funds entrusted to his care to help burned-out black churches. Pressured, he has given back a substantial portion to the donors. Of late, though, Baptist dissidents have caused the matter to be reinvestigated and changes apparently are forthcoming. Newspapers reported that Lyons' African-American critics now accuse him of "corroding the credibility of the largest black church group in the nation." Such scandals cause increasing embarrassment to white liberals who blame racism as the cause of nearly all black problems.

Confidence in justice and the jury system has all but disappeared and, with it, trust in big-city police departments. The first trial in the beating of Rodney King exonerated the police bullies. Money that can buy a "Dream Team" and expensive jury consultants certainly can tip the scales of justice. Ask O.J. Simpson and the Kennedy clan for verification. One also might wonder about the reversal by the judge of the jury verdict in the emotionally charged trial of the English au pair.

The public school system is in shambles, and universities have prostituted themselves in their announced pursuit of truth, wherever it might lead. The search for universal truth has been replaced by the search for self-esteem and minority identity. Truth has become parochial now that historical revisionists have taken power. Nurturing the life of the mind no longer is a primary goal; now, it almost exclusively is job training. Further, there is a dumbing down of standards to accommodate diversity, and grades have become inflated to the point where they are no more than form letters of recommendation, written with an eye to a possible lawsuit.

In the medical field, one no longer can be confident of the best treatment for one's condition, indeed, sometimes for any treatment at all, as HMOs pare costs on patient care to fill the coffers of their executives. It is an anomaly that some physicians can make more money, paid as bonuses, by not treating a patient than by treating someone. Pretty soon, the medical profession may engender no more respect than the legal one.

We no longer can be confident in the institution of the family as the anchor of society, teaching values and proper behavior. The two-worker family with latchkey children now is the norm. Today's spouses seem unwilling to accept the requisite sacrifices to make a marriage work. it is no wonder that divorce rates are near 65%. most within the first seven years.

Lastly, there is a lack of confidence in confidentiality itself. Hackers and even those not so adept can pry out of computer memory banks virtually any information desired. Employee e-mail and private calls at work are subject to eavesdropping by the boss, and one's cellular phone often serves as a broadcast booth.

COPYRIGHT 1998 Society for the Advancement of Education
COPYRIGHT 2000 Gale Group