Institutional Confidence

There's a room where the light won't find you
Holding hands while the walls come tumbling down
When they do, I'll be right behind you
--Tears for Fears

Recent Gallup poll indicates that American confidence in most major institutions continues to decline, and collectively rests at its lowest level since Gallup began systematically updating broad institutional confidence in 1993. Congress, banks, big business, unions, newspapers, police, organizations religion, state of the union.

Only confidences measures related to the military, the ultimate institution of government force, and small business, a fundamental institution of peaceful exchange, are above their historical averages.

A steady march lower in institutional confidence should be wholly expected as society moves toward a more socialistic position. As freedom is replaced by force, people notice that institutions just don't seem to work as well as they used to. That is because their liberties are being restrained and, commensurately, so is their prosperity.

Declining institutional confidence is a milepost on the road to the chaos destination of socialism.