Never had personal experience with a crooked lawyer. Have had run arounds with extended health insurance but I wouldn't call it gouging, HAVE experienced taxi drivers who will meander about on an indirect route and run up the meter (it is good to pay attention to where you're going in big cities- some, not all of course, but some drivers will take advantage of tourists or if they think you don't know better), never had direct dealings with a nursing home, no single women aren't out to get your husband (but it happens), it's possible that banks might cheat you- we've been hearing about incidences of it (RBC is being sued right now, along with JP Morgan and some others in the US), have heard of people being ripped of by mechanics- helps to know your autoparts I'm told, if a panhandler has a good day once in awhile- imo, good on 'em, teachers aren't in it for the holidays but it's a good fringe benefit...yes, you can trust people- but you should also be careful. I don't think it's a good idea to not be aware. Is that too fearful? Oh...not all politicians are dishonest, but enough are. I think it also depends on where you live, with regard to auto mechanics and taxi drivers anyway.

There is probably a grain of truth in many of these claims.   Dishonesty and outright fraud have been disclosed in some cases.  And we may know people who have had bad experiences. 

I've known people who have lived all of their lives being suspicious of almost everyone around them.  And I've seen some of the problems that have resulted.

All politicians are dishonest?   - so there is no sense in voting?  Right?   I don't get active in politics, but sometimes I try to talk to acquaintances, family or friends, and I find it hard to combat this attitude.  Negative, attack advertising helps to enforce it.  I hear 'they are all alike' or 'its not going to make any difference'.   This attitude favours the incumbant. 

Lawyers - I've had personal experience with someone who was so distrustful of lawyers gouging him that he wouldn't pay a few hundred dollars to have a well written will - making arrangements for the disposal of property and provision for minor beneficiaries, and making a poor choice of executor.  He honestly thought that the simplier the better - just let young Dodo distribute it right away.  He saved a few hundred; his estate was tied up for years and lost a hundred thousand.  The only person who came out on top was Dodo who got his money up-front instead of when everything was settled. 

Nursing homes don't 'take all your money'.  They charge for services.  You might think the rates are exorbitant but so are rates for many things (like hotel rooms).  If you don't have enough money to cover the cost, you pay all your money, except for a small 'comfort allowance'.  The government makes up the difference. 

I don't know about taxi-drivers in big cities, although when I lived in Montreal and in Hamilton (years ago) I never ran into a problem.   In my home city we don't have metered cabs.  You are charged by zones - one rate within a zone, a few dollars more if you cross from one zone to another (ie cross the river).  Pre-agreed upon charges for out-of-town ($25 to the airport).   You can ask how much the charge when you get into the cab.  Taxi drivers are just trying to make a living - often they work twelve hour days and earn under the minimum wage. 

I could go on.

One of the most common phrases in the Bible is 'Fear not', 'Don't be afraid'.   I would rather live my life trusting the people I come into contact with - believing that they are honest, well-meaning, kind.  Many of them will go out of their way to be helpful. 

I take the usual percautions:   I lock my car, and my home.  I keep an eye on my purse in public places.  I ask questions; I read documents before I sign them.  I get a second opinion about things like operations or expensive car repairs (my trusted mechanic who operated a small private repair shop out of his garage died a few years ago).  But generally I trust people. 

And I believe that the millionaire panhandler is an urban legend.

Hi seeler,

My experience to date with lawyers is varied.  I have never come across one that reeked of crooked.  

I have no direct experience in this area.  Having provided pastoral care for residents of several nursing homes I know that the services provided are not always adequately compensated.  

My experience with Insurance companies particularly claims has been uneventful.  In fact our representative was almost remorseful the last time we talked about a claim.  My fault so that is going to represent an increase to our premium.  There were a lot of weather conditions involved and I was not charged with anything.  Still, since I am the hitter and not the hittee I am technically at fault.

I had a very unhappy incident with Ford a number of years ago.  As I read more of Phil Edmunston's research on Ford I became more and more unhappy (though better and better equipped to deal with Ford and their customer relations staff.

End result.  I won't be buying Ford anytime soon.

Switched to GM as a result.  Paid a huge price for doing so.

Now drive Mazda and am more than satisfied.

As far as service garages (dealer and non) I have found the service pretty upfront.

I haven't experienced that.  I wouldn't be surprised that it happens.  I don't tend to take cabs unless I am alone.  That way I am paying attention to what is going on.  I always have a vague notion of where I am going and what routes exist to get there.

Yup.  Though we tend to spell it with the e .  

Tend to measure the hypocrisy by level.  Some don't see their inconsistency which while potentially problematic tends to rule out deliberate attempts to manipulate or harm.  Others, relatively few, in my experience are deliberately hypocritical.  These few really work the charm and the manipulation.  They are thoroughly greasy.  They know enough to keep themselves from coming under disciplinary attention yet they leave a bad taste in your mouth after you have been near them for any time.

On the whole I don't find clergy to be any more or less prone to hypocrisy than any other profession.

Any instititution that charges you more for using their service than they pay you for using your deposit is by definition crooked.  That said I have never had a bank conflict which has resulted in me losing money.  Most often the conflict is a long drawn out affair and you get the impression that they hope you'll give up before they are forced to give in.

Some banks do treat their customers better.

Haven't met any of these though I have heard of this happening on the odd occasion.  I don't think the ones sleeping in alleys are making out like bandits.  If they retire to the burbs at the end of the day then perhaps they have found riches in the practice of poverty.

Married to a former teacher who is now a professor at a university.  I've never known her to have too much free time.  In fact our biggest concern as a family has been the amount of time she invests in her profession.  My concern as a husband is what will the effect of our imminent empty nest have on this pattern.

I have heard the complaints and the criticism for years.  Understand that much of both come from folks ignorant to the reality of teaching.  Like any profession there are some within the ranks who ought not to be there.

As a married man I have never felt that I was more in demand.

I don't have a brother so definitely wouldn't trust anyone who claimed to be a long lost one that is for sure.  Trusting can be a risky proposition.  Trust should be earned and I have a number of friends who have proven themselves to be very trustworthy.

You mean people who operate as if these are truths?  Yes, I have met people who would swallow all of this uncritically.

Foreigners, different sexual orientations.

Depends upon the other.  If they are just as suspicious then they tend to get along like two peas in a pod.  They form a mutual misery society.  If the other thinks radically different then the fur flies or suspicion ratchets things up a notch or two.

Grace and peace to you.

John

I am familiar with this approach........

I too am tempted at times to succumb to this approach rather than doing the uncomfortable work of letting each individual stand or fall on their own merit.

Rita

Hi...
.
It interests me that the diverse stereotypes referenced have currency in the popular discourse. How often do we hear of the selfless personalities occupying the professions and occupations mentioned? I wonder why and suspect that some are well served by the perpetuation of negative stereotyping.
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George
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Well, lawyers are professional liers. They are obliged to lie to get their clients off, even if they damn well know that they are guilty. What a job, eh?

Lots of people believe lots of these things, and I suppose all of them have more than a grain of truth to them, but none of them apply universally. 

One personal example. I took my car to Canadian Tire for a simple oil change. They came back saying it needed almost $800 of work, detailing what the work was. Something smelled fishy to me. I went to another local garage that's highly recommended. The verdict of the mechanic there was that Canadian Tire had diagnosed a problem that didn't exist, but had missed a more dangerous problem that did exist - but which was a lot cheaper to fix. The mechanic said "I'll say I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt and that they might have had an inexperienced technician do the service on your car." There was little doubt from the way he said it that his real opiknion was that they were trying to cheat me. But you can't take one incident and apply it to every situation.

As to single women trying to entice husbands - it's just so irritating when that happens. I'm fending those single women off all the time. A lot of them don't bother with me, though, because they assume that as a member of the clergy I'm a hypocrite.

LOL, Steven!

Seeler, that sounds like a good taxi system- zones- we have bus zones. The further out into the suburbs you go the bus fair goes up (from 2.75, ro 3.50, to 5.00 i think it is- i can't remember. I usually stay within one zone) to two or three zones. I find it's actually cheaper, on a metered system, to share a cab with two or three if we're not going too far- about the same or even less than the bus, with 3 people within downtown. About a year ago, working outside of downtown at that time, I caught a cab driver taking a longer route. It was when we gor to my neighbourhood that he started to meander through the residential streets (when he could have carried on the main drag for four or five more blocks, but he turned into the residential streets and drove south instead. There was no reason to turn, no reason to drive south- and we were still far from either of our destinations)- so I knew my way around and had him turn back on track. I was with someone from work who was taking a cab to someone's place nearby, and he didn't know his way around my area as well- so had I not been there it may have cost more. Sometimes they will ask me what route I'd like to go- and not knowing the traffic conditions because I haven't been driving around, I have to say, "the fastest route, please" and trust that that's what they'll do. I get annoyed when they go right onto a heavily backed up street with construction going on, etc. I figure they must usually know because there are only so many main streets that will get close to my destination and they are driving them all day.

I was late for work and short on cab fare once- we got stuck in traffic while the meter went up and up. Not his fault- again outside of downtown, part of a main thoroughfare near a viaduct was completely closed and traffic was bottlenecked all over the place. The driver took me to the doorstep of my work anyway. I got his card and called him the next day and paid him the difference. He said no one had ever done that before.

But don't we all want a good one (crook or not) when we are falsely accused ?

They may take all my money/income when I have to move into one, but the income I will have when the time comes probably won't be even close to paying what it costs to keep me there.

No doubt, insurance is expensive . . . but we do we look at it differently when our house burns down and we need to collect it . . . or when a loved one dies, and we receive insurance, etc., etc., etc.,

Can't think of any specific personal experience . . . but I don't think we have ever taken a vehicle for a safety check to sell it without having to have something done, no matter how good a shape we thought it was in.

Our community used to have "zones" where it cost so much to go from A to B, but for several years now all the taxis have meters.  I've never felt that a taxi has purposely slowed down or gone a different route just to make more money off of me.

I've never personnally considered any clergy I know as hypocrites (I may have other things I think of particular clergy persons I've met, but this wouldn't be one of them).

Again, don't think of banks as cheaters - gougers maybe, but not cheaters, I think they gouge us legally enough.

If they do, good for them - not a means I would personally want to use to make any kind of money - I don't think panhandling is "easy".

there may be some who initially went into teaching with the idea of how great it will be to have summer and other vacation time - but my guess is they didn't stay in the profession very long once they realized how much of their personal time they would have to give up just to get regular work done, let alone any extras.

my husband is pretty wonderful, so whether they are single or other, I'm sure there would be a few who might consider it .  Having been divorced and single for a time  I've felt this from some married women . . . I'm sure many widsws and single women have found themselves quickly disconnected from their married circle of friends.

sooner or later, we have to trust someone with something!

As with anything, none of these scenarious are accurate in the sense that "all' are the same . . . I think when we used broad terms like this it is out of fear and incomplete information.

Arm - are you limiting your definition of Lawyer to criminal attorneys?   The lawyer I worked with for over ten years did mostly estate and trust work.  Other dealings I've had with lawyers have involved real property sales and transfers.  Other lawyers might speciaize in family law, or corporate law. 

And even in criminal law, I don't think their main job would be lying, but rather in trying to get the best deal possible for their client - working at plea bargaining, extenuating circumstances, rehibiliation.  I think it is to avoid being put in a position of having to lie that many lawyers do not put their client on the stand, but put the prosecutor in the position of having to prove guilt, rather than have the accused (and his lawyer) have to prove his inocence.

Actually, their job is to ensure that the accused get a proper defense and that their rights under the law are protected. Even the guilty have a right to due process under the law. What a job, indeed. I'd say it's a cornerstone of a just and free society.

Yes, seeler and Steven, I agree with you. My remark about lawyers being professional liers was cynical, not realistic.

What shall we do with the lawyers?

Kill them.

-Shakespeare

I actually saw the above quote in a lawyer's office.

I served on a jury a few years ago. . . It was fascinating to watch the lawyers for the defense and the prosecution do their job. 

The judge was amazing. A never to be forgotten experience!