The Case for Good Faith

I've never been sure how to pronounce it. Bo-nah feed-ays? Bah-nah fieds? The term bona fides trips me up every time. But it's an important concept, so I try my best. You might even say I make…a good faith effort.

To argue in good faith—the literal translation of the Latin—means assuming that the person on the other side is saying what he actually believes and that disagreement is not itself evidence of corruption, cowardice, or deceit. And vice versa.

The assumption and practice of good faith makes intellectual debate possible. And yet it feels increasingly rare.

Tell someone you favor free trade and you will quickly learn you are really serving the interests of multinational corporations. Defend immigration and you are importing voters. Oppose a war and you are carrying water for the enemy.

Politics, in particular, seems to bring out this line of reasoning. Money is a popular explanation for everything. A politician takes a position because donors paid him to. A writer believes something because subscribers reward her for believing it. A think tanker arrives at precisely the conclusion her funders desired. … [Subscribe to continue reading]