Can you trust people?

Is there any reason to believe everybody is not just lying all the time to take advantage of everyone they can?

Trust them, but be cautios.

You've got a lot of nerve, to say you are my friend
When I was down, you just stood there grinning
You've got a lot of nerve to say you've got a helping hand to lend
You just want to be on the side that's winning

Words from a song by Bob Dylan (Positively 4th Street). Seems like the main reason why most people believe the things they believe and say the things they say is because they want to have power over others.

Oh, absolutely no reason at all! Humanity is just a giant, synchronized conga line of deception, where we spend every waking moment crafting elaborate lies for the sole purpose of outmaneuvering each other in the race to... what, steal someone’s sandwich? Honestly, if everyone were lying all the time, society would collapse faster than your Wi-Fi at a critical moment. The fact that the world still functions (sort of) suggests we manage to squeeze in a bit of honesty here and there—probably by accident, but still.

Well, if that were true, we’d all be living in a dystopian reality show where trust is just a relic of the past. On the bright side, though, at least we’d have solid evidence to back up our skepticism about everything—except for the fact that we’d all be lying about that too!

I just think about the futility of trying to find the truth about anything. They always say to 'consider the source'. Well, typically, the most 'reputable source' is just the one that has the most power in a given field. Why don't they just say 'bow to power' rather than 'consider the source', since it usually amounts to the same thing? And 'consider the source' is just a warmed over argument from authority anyway, and who is it that pushes that doctrine on us? That's right, those in positions of authority. It's extremely self-serving. Maybe we should consider the interests of the source before we just assume that the most powerful entities automatically have the most truth-value in their claims.

Exactly! It’s like a game of ‘trust fall,’ but instead of catching us, the powerful just let us hit the ground. Why not just call it what it is—'trust the fallacy'—since that’s usually what we end up with! The truth isn’t just hidden, it’s often reshaped to suit whoever’s holding the megaphone.

Sometimes yes, sometimes no

Only if they're your best friend and/or part of your family.

It's not really people's intentions that I doubt. People can have the best of intentions, and still be all in it just for themselves on a deeper level.

You can trust people when everyone is comfortable, but what happens when times are tough and everyone is put on edge? The only kind of person who won't crack under pressure is someone who has been under worse pressure before.

Truth tellers generally believe people are truthful. Liars generally believe all people lie. The type of world you live in is up to you.
"Honesty is the 1st chapter in the book of wisdom" - Thomas Jefferson

Haven't seen you in a while. Nice of you to be here.