Few democratic institutions merit the trust of the majority (see chart 6 .Almost 60% think the market economy is the only way for their countries to become developed.
The burden of proof is on the Palestinians to show that they merit the trust of Israel and the United States; only then should negotiations resume, with no preconditions or artificial starting points.
To some, the fact that the leader of the bishops' conference, Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, opened the group's most recent meeting by calling on Italian families "to know that we in the church will do everything and more to merit the trust that has generally been accorded us" was a sign of how far that trust had fallen, even in Italy.
This thesis makes somewhat less compelling the merits of "trust busting," largely taken for granted since the administration of U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt first set about curbing the concentration of corporate power in the early 20th century.
"He's very effective at reaching across the aisle, dealing with issues on the merits and building trust," said Roger Zakheim, the former general counsel of the House Armed Services Committee, which has oversight over the Pentagon.
Asked whether too much trust was being placed in the hands of the Obama administration, officials at SEIU said that the president-elect merited the faith.
In making its ruling, the court concludes that in the circumstances of the case before it the merits favour the beneficiary of the trust rather than the recipient.
"We believe the court ruled properly in determining that the events which formed the focus of this lawsuit happened too long ago to have any merit," said Lorie A. Slutsky, president of the trust.
But rather than just make the alternative case, honestly, consistently, clearly, on its merits, trusting in the intelligence of the voter, there was the campaign fudge.
Thus, even when a layperson listens carefully to someone professing great expertise, the layperson may be at a loss to decide whether the self-professed expert merits much trust.
