Quid What?

We narrowed down the source of most conflicts among people. It occurs in the utility or "usefulness" part of their friendships. It isn't likely for us to have conflicts in our commonalities and we can turn off those who are no longer entertaining; but we depend on each other in order to accomplish anything. In order to have satisfaction of accomplishment we should take the time to understand the nuts and bolts of utility friendships.
One of the first principles to remember is that everyone desires to be honorable but it is human nature to default to what is advantageous for themselves. Therefore it is healthy to be skeptical when people make promises and present themselves as caring individuals. There is a moral code that everyone claims for themselves but few actually meet it. Call it sad or delusional but it is a certainty. That is why we form contracts and have laws; to have promises kept and  to clarify what the expectations are. We have the expectations of the recipient and the compliance of the giver. They try to meet on common ground.

In all transactions both parties will look to their self interest. A buyer will claim the item is cheap while the seller might claim the item is rare. We shouldn't be cynical about it but approach these things in an objective way so we can negotiate, vote, buy or sell effectively.  The Latin term "quid pro quo" is used where one thing of value is exchanged for another. What we are after is to have both parties walk away satisfied. We use the terms equal, just or fair when the transaction works out. Morality and laws try to find ways to make that happen.

This is showcased with politicians. They present themselves as saviors but when we find out they are in it for themselves we act shocked about it. It shouldn't be a surprise. But the cycle of believing an honorable presentation followed by being shocked by scandals repeats itself because we hope human nature can be circumvented somehow. The older a person gets, the more the cycle becomes obvious. The purpose of a constitution is to limit the damage people do in self interest while trying to acquire a functional government.

All around us we see injustices and hope to right them. We can start of course with ourselves. Our interests are important and we should never sell ourselves short but at the same time we should delight in making other people smile. That is the basis for courtesy and ethics.