This is an excerpt of Ben Shapiro’s remarks at the University of Austin—you can watch Ben’s full speech here.
Why do we seem to hate each other so much here in the United States? Why do so many people seem obsessed with conspiracies, steeped in anger, and ready to spend large segments of their day fulminating on the internet about people they don’t know, on topics that they know nothing about?
There’s a simple answer: Our institutions are failing.
Trust in American institutions—in the media, in church, in the scientific establishment, in government and, of course, in academia—is at an all-time low. And because of our lack of trust in institutions, Americans also mistrust one another.
You might think that it would be the opposite—that we mistrust one another, therefore we mistrust our institutions—but that’s not the case. If you grow up in a religious community, going to church helps shape you. Likewise, the people you hang out with shape you, the institution of your family shapes you, your school shapes you, your university shapes you. Once we lose faith in the capacity of these institutions to shape us, we become incapable of coming together anymore.
