Truthiness! A new discussion

Literati!

Stephen Cobert coined a phrase “Truthiness”: a statement masquerading as truth that sounds so convincing you are tempted to believe it.

As hoped for, in our summer relaunch we are getting submissions on a variety of topics.  Dora Klinova has some thoughts about honesty.

Recall Diogenese, who, when asked by Alexander the Great why he was carrying a lantern in broad daylight ansered, “I am looking for an honest man.”

Thanks for sending this in, Dora.

HONESTY

by Dora Klinova

“I am always very honest!” my friend exclaimed with passion.

I was surprised. Honesty and decency are normal human qualities. Do we need to declare them?

What does honesty mean? Not to lie? OK, I agree. But life puts us in different situations. Life is complicated by personal feelings, communication, business, and others endless circumstances.

If we don’t love somebody, should we immediately confess about this directly to his or her face?

How about business? People make money. They sell something for more money than they spend on it. They know I can buy it somewhere for less, but they will not tell me where I should go for the cheapest price. I know about this also and accept it, because it is a rule of marketing in this society. If you are a businessman, can you be a purely honest and open person? I doubt it.

Every business has hidden secrets. Many businesses spend huge money to protect their secrets. If you ask them to reveal their hidden information, you will get evasive answer. Businessmen must be able to maneuver to achieve success. A quick mind helps them to navigate between the truth and “not the truth.”

What does “not the truth” mean? Is it a lie? Is it honest? Where is the line drawn between honesty and dishonesty?

So, the more evasive and not too open you are, the more successful. The more successful you are, the more society respects you.

The more you can prevaricate in a good manner, the higher level of success you can achieve. What an interesting conclusion!

How should we deal with this contradiction?

Communication is a very important part of our life. I know that this person is dishonest, a liar and a scoundrel. Should I immediately confront and accuse him of being a deceiver in public, or would it be more appropriate to declare my opinion to him privately? Or maybe keep my opinion about him to myself?

When I was young, I was certain that as an honest, responsible person I should unmask the terrible rascal. (Such naïve straight forwardness, isn’t it?)

I did it. Many times. It never worked!  Never!  The rascal doesn’t want to hear your truth. He becomes angry and makes you miserable.

I’d never read the Bible before. I grew up in an atheistic society. Now I know that there is divine advice:

“He who corrects a scoffer gets shame for himself. And he who rebukes a wicked man only harms himself. Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you. Rebuke a wise man, and he will love you.”

Proverbs 9:7-8.

An old folk saying says: ” You should never wrestle with a pig; you both get dirty and the pig enjoys it.”

 A friend of mine has her own affirmation: “Never lie; never tell all the truth.” I like this. She usually adds, “and never miss an opportunity to go to the restroom.”

I like this also, but that is another subject.

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“Just gimme some truth.”  (John Lennon)