Eddie Maddock, sedonaeye.com contributing writer and Sedona Times Newspaper, Assistant Editor
Now and then when something unexpected pops into our lives the inclination frequently is to capture and preserve the event, object or, in some cases, memory. Pressed flowers, ticket stubs, baseball cards, photographs and autographs are examples of collectables for many of us.
The following article serves as one of my own examples. It was received from a viewer of a local TV program on which I was a participant ten years ago. My partner and I read the piece and by popular demand repeated it on several other occasions. Every once in a while I run across it and always it stimulates my thought process because, in my opinion, it’s so profound, particularly during these tumultuous and troublesome times. Therefore, with approval of the Sedona Times owner, publisher, and web site editor, I herewith offer to share this “author unknown” article.
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WHY LIES ARE BETTER THAN THE TRUTH
1. CREDIBILITY All lies are designed to seem true. The expert liar carefully uses elements that seem probable and logical and therefore easy to believe. On the other hand, The Truth is often illogical, wildly improbable and hard to explain. Lies are more believable than The Truth. 2. RELIABILITY The Truth is spontaneous, accidental and unpredictable. Lies, however, can be planned in detail long in advance and are thus guaranteed to turn out just as predicted. 3. ECONOMY To be The Truth, an account of a given event must be completely accurate. This requires painstaking resourcefulness, expensive research, time consuming attention to detail, complex logistics and thoroughness. In spite of all that, some people will believe it and others will not. A lie will produce identical results without all the fuss and bother. 4. VALUE The Truth can be found anywhere. It belongs to anybody who finds it, absolutely free. Lies are custom made, often by experts, and the best ones are highly polished works of art. Lies are worth more money than Truth. Have you ever heard of anybody bribing a witness to tell The Truth? 5. RESPECTIBILITY A. Great fortunes have been made by telling Lies to the public. The people who tell these lies are often grateful to the gullible consumers, so they endow libraries and universities and cultural centers. B. Nobody ever made a fortune telling The Truth. First of all, as already stated, The Truth is free. The only people who will pay money for The Truth are people who are being blackmailed, and they are only buying The Truth so they can hide it before anybody sees it. Lies lead to libraries and universities, while The Truth leads to blackmail. 6. STABILITY A. Take one thousand parts Truth, add one part Lie. Result: a Lie. B. Take one thousand parts Lie, add on part Truth. Result: again, a Lie. C. Note that you can make a Lie out of The Truth, but you can’t make The Truth out of a Lie. Lies are stronger and last longer than The Truth. 7. IMAGINATION In reporting The Truth, a person must research the precise facts and stick to them exactly as they occurred. The liar can report the same incident without doing any research, merely saying whatever comes to his mind and filling in “details” according to his fancy. Lies are more creative than Truth. 8. RECOGNIZABILITY People are accustomed to hearing Lies all the time. If you can tell The Truth, people will think you are lying. If you convince them you are telling The Truth, they will become suspicious. Why is he suddenly telling The Truth? What’s going on? 9. SUPPLY AND DEMAND A. In describing any given incident, only one version can possibly be The Truth, whereas the number of lies possible is unlimited. Obviously, lies are in far greater supply then than The Truth. B. There is a greater demand for Lies, if they are flattering, if they build up one’s hopes, if they help one escape reality or if they promise health, wealth, power or potency. Nobody is very anxious to hear The Truth. The only people who demand The Truth are those who are investigating something (lawyers, etc.) ~ and they only want The Truth to prove that someone is lying. Lies are the acceptable medium of exchange in our society. They are in good supply and the demand for them remains strong. The Truth is in extremely short supply, but even this tiny supply far exceeds the demand. CONCLUSIONS: Lies are superior to Truth in numerous ways. Lies are more ingenious; Lies make the world seem more pleasant; Lies are less embarrassing than Truth, and less frightening. Furthermore, in fields such as diplomacy, statesmanship, merchandising, advertising, public relations and bookkeeping, The Truth is an out-and-out handicap. In friendship, Truth is harmful; in love, it is disastrous. author unknown |
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Thank You Eddie, for sharing this from Your files. It certainly gives a lot to think about. I was taught that a ‘Classic’ is something that is Timeless, and crosses all boundries. This is a ‘Classic’!
So timely! I find this especially applies to the current state of our media as those responsible for reporting have completely abandoned proper researching and ethics.
One sees this even at the local level where one newspaper sees fit to rationalize what it chooses to print using completely subjective criteria. Some of its writers even go so far as to make claims that most of us recognize as ridiculous, such as “small town” references made by those who live in enormous cities like New York City, Chicago, San Fransisco and London are really referring to “sense of place or belonging,” purely to sell their organization’s agenda in supporting growth for Sedona!
As someone who grew up and relocated here from a large city, in my 60 plus years have never heard anyone say any such thing. Actually the size of the population in a city is the chief thing city dwellers brag about.
Belief is to lies as mortar is to bricks.: – Tommy
Referring to Tommy’s comment, “Belief is to lies as mortar is to bricks”, without belief or mortar neither lies nor bricks will adhere. Disintegration of either (belief or mortar) results in devastation and chaos. Sadly, isn’t that the moral of the “author unknown” article?
A recent reunion with the gentleman who videotaped the program Backfire, subject of the above article, resurrected memories – some good; some not so good. But without a doubt the author gave credence to the amazing words crafted and conveyed by that anonymous individual.
The last Backfire TV program aired on December 13, 2000 – a few months short of being 20 years ago. And while some things in Sedona have changed, the tug of war relating to varied opinions and perceived direction of what’s best for Sedona rages on.
Is that an appropriate enough reason for once again revisiting the merits of lies versus truth? You decide.