Lies: From White to Bald-faced and Beyond

Hmmm, when does a lie cross the line from dishonesty to insidious?

We alltell lies from time to time. 24/7 honesty is an ideal we may aspire to but willnever reach. There are, of course, a number of different classes of liesranging from harmless to damaging to insidious.

Thereis the mischievous lie. It is playful game where we string some alongfor a while to get a rise from them or see how long we can get away with it. Wefully intend to come clean and always do. It ends with a laugh and a “Oh, yougot me that time!”.

Nextthere is the white lie – an untruth about a small or unimportant matter thatwe tell to avoid hurting another person. It does not change the generalprinciple that honesty is the best policy. It is just that there are times whensparing someone’s feelings trumps being fully honest.

Thenthere is the off-white or gray lie – an untruth about something we deem tobe a small or unimportant matter that is not quite as small as we make it outto be. We stretch the boundaries because telling the truth will be difficultand we are not in a courageous frame of mind. Our conscience scolds us but notso much that we relent.

Next comes the lie of omission. We tell the truth but not the whole truth. We leave out a detail or two that is likely to push someone’s buttons or make us look bad. We rationalize our way through it falling back on the adage What he doesn’t know can’t hurt him.

Now wecome to more insidious classes.

The self-servinglie. This happens when a person has got themselves into trouble andcannot find an easy way out. The lie is a means of covering one’s tracks. Harmis done but the perpetrator chooses not to own it. Although we are tempted,most of us refrain from this particular practice.

Now we come to the bald-faced lie. It is obvious to all parties that the truth has been left behind. People who practice this type of lying barge ahead shamelessly trusting that their brazenness will see them through regardless of how their reputation may suffer.

And finally, there is the politician’s bald-faced lie which has all the qualities of a regular bald-faced lie and more. The truth does not serve the politician’s purpose so they simply abandon it. They know full well that any reasonably intelligent person will see through the lie. But they forge ahead with blinders on believing that being an elected official gives them an exemption to the standards that apply to others.

Let me emphasize that not all politician’s engage in this practice. But there are a few who regularly do and who are doing so right now. I will refrain from pointing fingers. You can fill in the blanks yourself.

Thislast category of lie is a wilful and insidious forgery of the truth. Rememberthe ones who perpetrate it the next time you go to vote.

~ NowAvailable Online from Amazon, Chapters Indigo or Barnes & Noble: HuntingMuskie, Rites of Passage – Stories by Michael Robert Dyet

~ Michael Robert Dyet is alsothe author of Until the Deep Water Stills – An Internet-enhanced Novel whichwas a double winner in the Reader Views Literary Awards 2009. Visit Michael’swebsite at www.mdyetmetaphor.com .

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