informing, snitching, or otherwise sticking your nose into places where it has no business in order to satisfy one's self-righteousness, to stir things up, or for one's own benefit, is among the most base and cowardly of human acts.

I must say that I fundamentally disagree. Such an attitude only leads to a total lack of accountability among all affected parties. It leads to mentalities of, "I'll let you get away with your stuff if you let me get away with mine," which in turn makes everyone else distrustful. The end result is that no one trusts anyone, and without trust, no progress can be made. (Would I buy a car if I knew everyone else would look the other way as it was stolen from me?) It is this mentality that causes total industrial, civic, aggricultural, and political stagnation.

You said you were from the former Soviet Union, correct?... I can't think of a more fitting word for the Soviet experience than "stagnant".

When you go out of your way to ensure implicit agreements are upheld, the offending person won't trust you, but everyone else in the world will. This trust is the foundation of society. I for one would rather have a someone do the right thing for self-righteous reasons than the wrong thing for self-serving reasons. At least I can trust the one self-righteous actions, if not motives.

By the way, this concept of "Mutual Trust" being the foundation for societies is not just some half-baked idea. It's actually the foundation of economics. Money is nothing but the embodiment of a favor. When I want something done, I trade my "favors" (money) for what I want. Whoever gets my money can then trade their money for whatever favor they want. This whole system crumbles when no one can trust anyone else to redeem their favor. Ever wonder why Russia's economy has *never* been strong? The whole national mentality is one of mistrust. Most Russian families horde their life savings in American dollars because people at least trust the American government to stand behind their "favors".

Sorry for getting a little offtopic.

-Ted

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