Unpopular Virtues: Honesty
Sometimes I feel that being honest is one of the virtues that brings the most bitterness in today’s world. It’s no longer like in our grandparents’ time—or rather, in my grandparents’ time, because as I’m just five years away from turning fifty, I’m talking about more than a century ago.
In the past, a person’s word was worth more than a contract, and it wasn’t necessary to formalize agreements before notaries or judges. A promise was a promise.
People kept their word because their reputation was the most valuable thing they had. That’s why being honest was essential to maintain society’s respect.
Nowadays, being honest is practically considered a character flaw, because people think you’re a fool if you are.
Corruption has become so normalized that it’s common to hear people say that those who were honest in public office were fools for not taking advantage of the opportunity.
That’s why I like a quote—I don’t know who said it—that goes: “You are truly honest when you do the right thing even when no one is watching.”
Virtudes impopulares: Honestidad
A veces siento que el ser honesto es una de las virtudes que más sinsabores trae en la vida actual. Ya no es como en los tiempos de nuestros abuelos, más bien de los míos, porque como estoy a un lustro de cumplir mi quinta década, estoy hablando de más de un siglo atrás.
En el pasado, la palabra valía más que un contrato, y no era necesario protocolizar acuerdos ante escribanos o jueces. Lo prometido se cumplía.
Se cumplía la palabra porque la reputación de las personas era lo más valioso que tenían. Por eso ser honesto era primordial para mantener el respeto de la sociedad.
Hoy día, ser honesto es considerado un defecto de carácter prácticamente, porque te consideran un tonto si lo eres.
La corrupción se normalizó tanto que es común decir en referencia a personas que fueron honestas en cargos públicos que fueron unos tontos por no haber aprovechado la oportunidad.
Por eso me gusta una frase que no se a quien pertenece que dice que se es realmente honesto cuando hacemos lo correcto incluso cuando nadie nos ve.
Original language: Spanish
Translation by: Microsoft Copilot
Image generation by: Microsoft Designer
I am here with you.
For me, what you say still counts, and a promise is a promise, and as the saying goes: a promise is a promise.
A handshake to seal an agreement also counted, and I believe that verbal agreements are still legally binding, but nowadays you have to be able to prove it, because it's one person's word against another's, so there always have to be witnesses. Nowadays, it's often the other way around. Even a contract, something that's written down in black and white and signed, is simply ignored, even by the law, which I find strange.
It's like my solicitor once said: there's a big difference between being right and being proven right, and by being proven right, she meant having the law on your side, of course.
My grandfathers had a gentlemen's agreement. Although they came from different cultures, they promised each other that if one of them died first, the other would take care of each other's wives. I find that very special. The grandfather who lived longer kept his word, although the widow thanked him for his help. She preferred to be free and could take care of herself, and she also sensed that it could turn out very badly. She was an intelligent woman who spoke many languages and had also studied, and indeed, she was proven right.
I'm not sure I agree with this, because the truth also has many faces. What is true for one person may not be true for another, and therein lies the difficulty. Ask 20 people who were present at an accident what happened and they will all have seen something different.