There is an issue that plagues people and it manifests itself in a form of blind trust that I find rather unnerving. Have you ever noticed people with similar beliefs; be it religion or even simply philosophical, put a sort of trust in one another without truly knowing much about each other at all?

Quite often within communities and groups, we as individuals will place trust in an individual who may in fact be undeserving in that allowance simply because they fit a specific profile we have deemed acceptable. Sure my child can come and play with your child. You believe in the same things we do, surely you wouldn’t harm my child.

Or maybe we let them stay in our homes for a day or two because they have no where else to go and we feel badly for them. After all, they look so pitiful and harmless what damage could such an innocent soul do?

What a nice person, offering to help me carry my groceries inside. It is too bad there are so very few gentlemen left in this world.

Wow, that man is a doctor and a pillar of the community. Our daughter would be privileged to spend a day with their family.

I am sure I could list several scenarios where we knowingly put ourselves in danger not really thinking in the future enough to see the potential harm or trusting blindly in the humanity of this person or these people. We are then surprised when we are blindsided and burned by those who seemed so kind or “not the type”. Trusting people we barely know just based on their affiliation is as risky as stopping any Joe on the street and engaging them in the same manner.

What I think is often forgotten about those that commit heinous crimes, is their ability to be charismatic and often dubbed as the boy or girl next door. These individuals frequently pull the wool over the eyes of everyone they come in contact with and give them a sense of ease.

It is our job as individuals, parents, friends to be proactive in our encounters and relationships with others. Take the time to feel out a situation and environment before exposing yourself or your children to it. Listen to your intuition but don’t be blinded by it, sometimes even intuition is wrong. Most of all, remember that anyone can be the perpetrator of nefarious activities or even just an accidental mishap, winning their way into your inner circle doesn’t make them safe.

Knowing someone and building trust never fully eliminates the risk as even those who are nearest and dearest can harbor harmful behaviors and secrets, but hopefully we can lessen the possibility of a virtual stranger causing harm.