America's Loss of Faith in Itself: Failing Confidence in Our Institutions

We Americans are facing a severe crisis. Some might rightly call it a crisis of trust. We no longer trust our social institutions, and that's a serious problem. Most governments likes ours exist solely by the consent of those governed.  Well, what happens when citizens withdraw that consent? That's not  meant to be rhetorical. That's where we are now as a country.

In 2022, Gallup published a poll about Americans confidence in our top 16 most important social pillars. Of those, 11 were total failures. Of the five which were positive, only the U.S. military and small business had a solid approval rating. The other three were only marginally positive.

Gallup's most recent approval poll from July 2024 shows that our trust in government and our institutions have gotten worse. A 2023 Ipsos report indicated that on average only 30% of Americans said we could trust each other.  So, given this is a presidential election years, lets' start with confidence in the presidency.

When questioned about their confidence in the role of the presidency, 26% of respondents said they had " a lot" or "great deal" of trust in the presidency. Compared that to 69% who said they had little or no confidence. 4% said they had absolutely no trust in the presidency at all. In 2013, while Donald Trump was President, 36% said they had a great deal or a lot of trust in the office. The Nixon Presidency went from a high of 71% to 24% post Watergate. Ronald Reagan left office with a approval rating of 63%. Bill Clinton's was 66% despite his impeachment.

Trust in Congress has historically remained low, yet somehow it magically manages to pull off a 95% reelection percentage. For the period of June 3 - 23, 2024, Congress had a 9% approval rating according to the Gallup poll. 4% said they trusted Congress a "great deal" while 5% said "a lot". But, 88% said they had no or little trust in Congress.

Just these two sets of numbers alone would have most politicians in other nations booking flights out to non-extradition nations, and yet here in America, many are campaigning for reelection based on the marvelous job they've been doing. How can we explain this?

So, if Congress and the President can't get the job done, who can? How about the third branch of government, the legal system? If we look at the justice system, 76% of respondents would find it guilty of not serving the people. 3% rejected it completely. A mere 11% was happy with how things are going.

The Supreme Court was once held in high esteem and could always be expected to be one of the few institutions with a positive approval rating. But ever since its 2010 "Citizens United" debacle, faith in the high court has taken a nose dive. Just 30% approved of the job being done by the Chief Justices. 66% would dismiss the lot of them. 3% had nothing but contempt for the nation's top court. Is it any wonder that America is labeled a "flawed democracy" and on the brink of being labeled a "failed democracy"?

What about the news media? Print media held themselves out to be the sole arbiters of truth and morality for over a hundred years.  Today, 96+% of all media is owned by just five corporations. Can we still trust them to provide fair and balanced reporting? Beginning with television, 12% say they have a "great amount" or "a lot" of confidence in network news while 83% lack any confidence in what we're told. Another 5% would cancel the lot of them. 

The overwhelming majority of Americans don't believe we're getting "non-partisan" or "fair and balance" reporting from any national networks. As for print media, it had a 18% approval rating. Americans, it seems, have come to expect print media (newspapers, magazines, etc) to publish biased or slanted stories. 79% of respondents agreed.

The survey didn't mention social media sites such as "X" (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Gab, YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, etc.  However, another survey showed 25% trusted social media. 42% had confidence in cable news, and 38% in podcasters. Who did they trust most? 56% said their local broadcasters.

A Pew poll reported that among those under 30 (Gen X) had a 50% approval rating of social media sites when it came to getting their news. It was 36% for those ages 30 to 49 (Millennials) and from 50 to 64, the approval rating was 25% and 20% for everyone 65 and older.

Next are those who protect us---law enforcement and the military. America has boasted having the best equipped, best trained, best fed, and best prepared military in the world. Ever since 1945, we have taken on the (mostly self appointed) role of the world's policeman. However, following a exhaustive 20 year war in Afghanistan, which ended where it started, the Pentagon announced that we are currently not militarily capable of fighting a sustained multi-front conflict.

Our planes, ships, tanks, and equipment are in desperate need of total overhaul or replacement. We've depleted our stockpile of spare parts  and other supplies, and all the while, men and women are getting out at a higher rate than average. But, despite our military loss, how did the poll indicate Americans felt about our men and women in uniform? Despite a 2.7% attrition rate, the 2024 Gallup poll showed that most American's still had the back of our military personnel. 61% had a positive opinion of our Armed Forces compared to 39% who didn't.

As an aside, a  Rand study reported that 54.4% of parents would discourage their children from joining the military as enlisted (non-commission). On the other hand, 75% of parent would encourage them to join, but only as an officer. Having been there, done that, I have to agree. Officer is the only way to go. They have a better choice of duty stations, pay, housing, retirement, and they are  treated much better.

When it came to law enforcement, 51% said they trusted the local and state men and women in blue. However,  a sizeable number---48%---puts little or no trust in them. 58% reported little or no trust in the FBI. 43% felt the same way about the Secret Service (the poll was taken prior to the attempted Trump assassination, so it's likely those numbers would be lower). Just 46% had any confidence in the CIA. 42% felt the same way about the Department of Homeland Security. 33% trusted the Justice Department.

Our currency is backed by the "full faith and credit" of the U.S. Government, which, if so, should give every American serious reason to pause. We have the biggest debt of any nation. Congress continually raises the "debt ceiling" so we can keep the government going. We routinely borrow billions from foreign countries (including China) just to keep our nation afloat and make the interest payments on that debt. Imagine having to borrow money just to pay the interest on your mortgage or credit card debt! How long do you think you could keep that up before ending up in bankruptcy court?

So, let's look at the Federal Reserve System, which  manages and regulates the nation's money supply. With a approval rating is mere 36%, most disapprove of how its job performance. 62% of Americans lack faith in the FRS. Next comes the banks. It should come as no surprised that 72% expressed little or no confidence in them.

Big Business, often portrayed as ruthless and immoral (not to mention puppet master of Washington) is deeply disliked by most Americans---83% to be exact. The Big Tech companies like Microsoft or Apple, have an approval rating of only 27%. Small businesses (the "Mom and Pop's" ) are liked by 64% of consumers (which is why Big Business spends billion to portray themselves as being community and people oriented). After peaking in the 1950's, only 27% now approve of unions.

Another key institution is healthcare. Globally, the U.S. healthcare system is last among the top seven industrial nations. It ranks highest among the top industrial nations and 54th overall in infant mortality rates, 60th in life expectancy (behind Estonia and Saudi Arabia), highest treatment cost, fewest hospital beds, and 22nd in quality of life.  Our healthcare system's emphasis is on repeat  treatment instead of prevention.  Could the problem be putting profits over patients?

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has a disapproval rating of 58% following their (mis)handling of COVID-19. Given the above, it shouldn't surprise you to learn that our healthcare system as a whole has an approval rating of just 36% while 64% disapprove.

Our currency boldly proclaims  "In God We Trust". So what about religious institutions? Surely we can safely put our trust in religion...can't we? Well, apparently not so much. According to the Gallup Poll, organized religion has a approval rating of only 32%. 67% of respondents placed little or no faith in doctrinaire religion. In the 1950's, according to a University of Southern California report, 57% of households belonged to some religious institution. By 1960 it rose to a high of  63.3%. Why?

America had come through two wars---WWII and Korea. The economy was booming. Suburbs were springing up everywhere. nearly everyone had a car and a nationwide highway system to drive them on.  We had a functional government where both sides tried to meet in the middle. There was a new sense of optimism to go along with our patriotism. Everybody liked Ike. But somewhere in the late 1970's and early 80's, it all began to fade.

Rev. Jerry Falwell's "Moral Majority" (which was neither) was became viewed as a religious form of McCarthyism; a stick to measure others by. It demanded conformity as it inserted its values into government and society. Televangelists ("pay to pray" preachers) like Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, Ted Haggard, Oral Roberts, and Falwell, watched by 85% of religious households at one point, found themselves immersed in scandal amid a lifestyle of obscene wealth.

There were widespread reports of child molestation by Catholic priests (and the Church's efforts to intimidate victims and hide the perpetrators), pedophilia, hiring prostitutes, sex trafficking, and tax evasion as well as their positions on abortion, birth control, LGBQT acceptance, single mothers, support of illegal immigration, musical lyrics, and more. America changed as organized religions failed to adapt.  

A 2020 Pew Poll revealed that while church attendance was down considerably, 64% of Americans still self-identified as Christian. Given the current trend, its predicted that by 2030, that number will be 46% or less and 35% by 2070. Americans are leaving mainstream (mostly fundamentalist and conservative churches) at a rate of 10% to 15% annually. Many are becoming agnostic, atheist, or converting to Buddhism, Humanism, Hinduism, or to spirituality (Wicca, pantheism, paganism, etc). What's the fastest growing  religion in America? Islam. Non-doctrinaire? Secularism (aka "none").

Lastly, education. Our educational system is ranked 12th among 81 industrialized nations. We scored in the bottom half globally in math (the top five were all Asian countries). In science, we ranked 16th out of 81 countries,, placing us in the second tier. The top five? All Asian again.

The 2024 Gallup Poll showed our public school system had a approval rating of 29%. However, 70% of those surveyed said our public schools were failing. We had kids graduating high school who can't read at a 12 grade level (many have an 8th grade reading or comprehension ability). In math and the sciences, it's just as bad. History, English (including proper grammar) face a similar problem. In literacy, we rank 36th globally (note that poverty levels are closely tied to literacy rates).  

Higher education doesn't fair much better. To many colleges depend on quotas to fill their enrollment criteria rather than the best performing academically.  Many incoming Freshmen aren't prepared for college. As a result, they are usually required to take remedial classes. just to get started.

Bear in mind too that college isn't for everyone and not every job should requires a four year degree. The best alternative? Trade school. Tuition is much less. There is a strong job demand (many have jobs before graduating), it pays well, and the trades offer a wide range of opportunities.

A lot of students go for whatever major is easiest or trendy, This usually translates into degrees with little demand (such as gender or race based studies, art history, Humanities, Mass Communication, Anthropology, or Sports Health or Administration). These are the students who typically end up with the most debt and least likely able to find a job or pay off their academic debt.

So, there you have it. We have lost confidence in overwhelming majority of our foundational institutions; a trend which has been accelerating for years.  For some of these institutions, it may be possible to earn back some of that trust over time, but for others, perhaps the majority, that confidence appears gone forever, and with them an allegiance to our nation's future.

 

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