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#36A CYNICISM

Once I thought people could be trusted, had good intentions, were decent, caring, honorable. Now I think otherwise:  humans are self-serving; many are corrupt: fraud / bribery follows them! Those who embrace altruism are deluded, not seeing misguided self-interest for what it is. Many “do gooders” are hypocrites, too stupid to see themselves as such.  I was once more accepting and forgiving.  Now I am criticalsneering at, and finding fault with, much of what people do and say.  Most politicians are crooks. I don’t support “public servants”!  

More Information About This Worldview Theme

a club WV Theme...

...individual <---> group

the theme is paired with: #21B Service to Others  to make Choice #32   in the Choices We Make cards 

this theme as presented in older version of theme structure:   version 2.0    version 3.0         is this theme new to version 4?--NO

click to look at the Project Worldview Cultural Literacy Encyclopedia Related Words, Beliefs, Background articles for the above choice 

 Project Worldview authored discussion, Worldview Watch related issues, songs, etc.  

Discussion from The Worldview Literacy Book Songs
Worldview Watch #62, posted 12/19/2019 The Sad State of American Democracy
Worldview Watch #53, posted 6/26/2017 America: Toward a More Perfect Union or Winner Takes All? 
Worldview Watch #24: Unvaccinated Children, Public Health, and Worldviews
 

Wikipedia articles related to this theme:

Misanthropy Cynicism  political corruption
  Cultural Pessimism hypocrisy Demagogy
corruption  Dumbing Down Corporatocracy
corporate crime
     

 worldview internal inconsistency related: Strongly valuing this theme and any of the themes in the list below is a contradiction:

#1A   Humbly Unsure    #2A   The True Believer #2B I Know What's Best For You   #3 Valuing Honesty, Learning
#8B   Belief in a Personal God #9A   Religious Fundamentalism  #9B  In God's Hands: Apocalypticism #10   Secular Humanism    
#16B   The Golden Rule, Village Ethic of Mutual Help   #17B Gratitude & Forgiveness   #18B Rational, Dispassionate   #21A  Idealistic Populism 
  #22B Imperialism #23A  Sustainability   23B Enoughness #28B Healthy Orientation
#31   Education for Democracy   #32A  Valuing Human Rights  #32B Culture of Tolerance   #34 Valuing Traditions and Status Quo   
#35B Working for Change   #37B Global Citizen   #38   Love As Family Glue   #40  Environmental Economics
#42   Ethical Orientation   #44A Sanctity & Dignity of Life  #45B Work, Play, Pay As You Go  #46A Technological Fix  
#46B Military Backers #47A  The Attitudinal Fix Mentality    #48B  Liking Co-operation-Based Communities #49B Idealistic Socialism
#50B Left Anarchist   #51A Ethical Globalization #51B Big Business Pushes Global Limits #52   Physically Challenged ==>Independent Living
#101A Mind Open, Vision Global   #102A Conscientious, Efficient Stewardship #102B Easy-Going, Disorderly, Cavalier #103B Celebrating Team Accomplishments
#104A  Human-Centered #201B Faith & Wishful Thinking #202B Relaxed, Generous, Loving #203B Egalitarian Progressive
#204A Freedom From Limits #204B  Limits & Ethics      

More to Explore -- Worldview Theme #36A: Cynicism

Corruption Perceptions Index by Transparency International ("the global coalition against corruption") 
Cultural Pessimism: Narratives of Decline in the Post-Modern World, by O. Bennett (2001 book / Google Books)
The Cynic's Sanctuary
A Monologue on Cynicism, Faith, Happiness, Honesty, Sadness, by Amit Singh
Children Develop Cynicism at Early Age (report on Yale University Dept. of Psychology study)
Humor, Sublimity, and Incongruity, by John Marmysz (insight into why laughter is an escape from cynicism)
Brief Paper on Cynicism
Cynicism in Business Organizations
On Youthful Cynicism, by Bertrand Russell (classic 1930 essay)
The Virtue of Engineering Cynicism, by David Weinberger
Humbug and Cynical Acid, by Duncan Baird (Unitarian Universalist sermon) 
Hypocrisy Today -- The Official Publication of the American Society of Sociopaths (ASS)
Are You A Hypocrite?  (includes formula hypocrisy = beliefs - actions)
Spying on Democracy by Heidi Boghosian (excerpt from 2013 book)
Amazon's climate pollution is getting way worse - greenwashing hypocrisy? by Justin Calma (on The Verge Aug 1 2022)
"Christian radio host sentenced to three life sentences for Ponzi scheme bilking millions from elderly listeners" (report from NBC News October 2021)
“We Are Living in a Failed State” by George Packer (article in The Atlantic April 21 2020)  

"Facebook is refusing to take down a Trump ad making false claims about Joe Biden"

A Major Coal Company Went Bust. Its Bankruptcy Filing Shows That It Was Funding Climate Change Denialism. By Lee Fang   (May 17 2019 report posted on The Intercept)
“New York Suburb Declares Emergency, Barring Unvaccinated Children From People” by Michael Gold and Tyler Pager (example of human folly related article from New  York Times Mar 26 2019)

"Catholic Priests Abused 1,000 Children in Pennsylvania, Report Says" by Laurie Goodstein & Sharon Otterman (from The NY Times August 14 2018)

Somehow, Scott Pruitt's EPA Continues to Amaze Even the Most Cynical Among Us by Charles P. Pierce  (Dec 30 2017 Esquire magazine article)
"South Africa's Corruption" (article in The Economist Dec 9 2017)
“How Corporate Capitalism Looted Democracy” by William Greider (Sept 18 2017 post on Bill Moyers website)

Dark Money: The Hidden History of Billionaires ...  by Jane Mayer (book review by David Nasaw in The New York Times Jan 12 2016)

The land of the free—Really? by Frances Moore Lappe (a cynical look at USA freedom, on Common Dreams website  October 29 2015)
Reviews on Amazon: Five Star Fakes (report from The Economist October 24 2015)

Business and Corruption: Robber Barons Beware (fighting corruption in China, report from The Economist October 24 2015)

"Corruption and Natural Resources: a fight for light" (report from The Economist October 24 2015)

“Dirty Secrets: Volkswagen’s Falsification of Pollution Tests… “(cover story from The Economist September 26 2015)
"Four cancer charities' $187 million in donations mostly paid for fundraisers, government alleges" (report in LA Times May 19, 2015)
The Looting Machine: warlords, tycoons, smugglers and the systematic theft of Africa's wealth by Tom Burgis  (book review in The Guardian March 2 2015)
"Brian Williams-Gate: America Loses Its Innocence Once Again by Joe Randazzo (Feb 8 2015 commentary posted on The Daily Beast)

"Sleuths Hunt for Kazakh Bank’s Missing $6 Billion"

"Dollarocracy" by John Nichols and Robert McChesney (article from The Nation Sep 30 2013 based on similarly titled book)
"Nigerian Oil Stolen on Industrial Scale" (BBC News report Sep 20 2013)
"Corruption in Venezuela: The Billion Dollar Fraud" (article from The Economist Aug 10 2013)
"Crisis of confidence in government handling of corruption, survey shows" by Erik Kirschbaum (worldwide focus in July 9 2013 report, on Reuters website)
"Latin America: Region One of the Worst for Corruption" by Lauren Villagran (article in CSM Dec 5 2012)
"Corruption in Northern Italy: A Plague on all Their Houses" (article from The Economist Nov 10 2012)
Why America Failed: The Roots of Imperial Decline by Morris Berman (lengthy talk by author of this 2011 book)
"Brooklyn Blues: A reminder of how widespread corruption is in the Empire State" (Sep 2012 article The Economist)
"Shell Awards Christian Teacher $10K for 'Exemplary Science Teaching" by Sandy Leon Vest (from April 2012 blog)
"Doc Charged in $375 Million Medicare Scam" (Feb 2012 news item from The Fiscal Times
"HHS Protects Florida Consumers from $145 Million Health Insurance Heist"  (Dec 2011 article on Huffington Post
"Democracy in America is a Useful Fiction," by Chris Hedges (a cynical perspective from 2010 article)
quotes related to cynicism

back to Theme Choices version 5.0 structure

"As you shop in "The Reality Marketplace" avoid spending your "reality cash" too early,  before you have seen everything. " 
from Coming of Age in the Global Village,  by Stephen P. Cook,  with Donella H. Meadows.

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