From: metahuman (v1@metavirus.net)
Date: Mon Dec 15 2003 - 14:30:25 MST
[simul]
Trust is when you have reason to suspect that someone will fulfill their stated commitments.
Trust is "reasonable expection of a person doing what that person has stated he/it will do".
Can you explain how that definition of trust is "emotional". [Missing "?" purposeful?]
[metahuman]
The commonly suggested definition of trust is "a rational expectation of goodness." This definition is limited and poorly stated; it's also your definition, and it is incorrect.
It is not rational to assume truth where contradictory evidence exists. This brings us to the basic philosopher's question: would the collision between the tree and the forest floor have produced a sound if there were no witnesses to the event? Based on previous experiences, I answer "yes" thus irrationally assuming truth. In this case, however, {the decision to assume} was rational as previous knowledge of like events had been individually experienced.
Rationality is about decisions. To describe a tool of communication as rational or irrational is idiotic. I know of no above average intelligent person that would describe a hammer as rational or irrational. It's simply a tool. Trust is simply a tool.
Trust is not a requirement for progression or community development. I know. I've been involved in community development for as long as I've been visual memetic engineer. That's around 6-7 years. What is required to build and develop a community? Relationships. Some may say that relationships are about trust. They would be right if the claim weren't so general. Some communities build on trust. Some communities build on goals. Some communities just build.
Take the Church of Virus as an example. The CoV develops on goals. Its official goal is "to compete with the traditional religions in the human ideosphere with the idea that it would introduce and propagate memes ... for leading a truly meaningful life and attaining immortality without resorting to mystical delusions." As obnoxiously stagnant the Virus meme may be perceived, we're all working towards a common goal while we pursue individual goals.
Communities, like businesses, that develop on trust will fail. They will crumble and disappear. This is due to the volatility of trust. In a computer, if a component fails or betrays the "trust" as you put it, the system will either a) crash or b) alert the user of the event and suggest that the system be repaired. In other words, once that trust is betrayed, it is reasonable to assume that everyone will be skeptical of each other.
Communities that build on goals and utilize rational decision-making to achieve its goals will succeed nevertheless.
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