Liar Liar Pants On Fire

People lie. It happens. Why people lie? Well, that’s something that there is no definite answer to. Whether they don´t want to admit the truth to themselves, hurt others with the truth, or do both, people quickly magnetize to lying. Most don’t take into account the effects that their actions have on the people around them, and how it can ultimately affect how they perceive others. Once one has been lied to by someone that they put their trust into, it’s nearly impossible for the other party to gain back the trust, and it’s usually not till the end of an relationship, whether friendship or romantic relationship, that one realizes this. Out of love for another, one will ignore the bad. The multiples lies, and the problems that come with that. They will pretend that there is nothing wrong, that they will grow from this mistake, that they don’t want to lose the person they have had so many memories with.

But at one point, it will all hit at once, leaving an absolute mess. Some wonder whether lying in a romantic relationship or in a friendship hurts more. People presume that it all depends on the amount of truth you put in someone. If that person has lied to you before, there probably isn’t as much trust there, as say the trust you put in your best friend. But also, if someone has lied to you multiple times, why would one give them their time and energy to do it again? At the realization point, one will look back and try to comprehend why they put themselves through all that. Was it the love? The care? The memories? The difficulty to let go? Whatever it is, once its recognized, one will see it what is coming from a situation faster the next time it happens to them, and they will know how to leave the situation swiftly without getting hurt again.

When analyzing intrinsic and instrumental values, truth is proven by the explanation. Truth holds the value in itself, while also holding the good that it can bring to you as an outcome. Not many things are intrinsic, or valuable in herself, which ends up making them even more valuable. Because truth is both intrinsic and instrumental it is easily distinguishable from lying, which only demonstrates instrumental value because selfishness is aligned with lying. Even though there is an obvious line between truth and lies, the instrumental value that lies carry can compare to truth by realizing that they both have means to an end, whether it be obvious or take more thought. The end truth meets is the positivity and the internal feeling that comes with journey of telling the truth. Also, the need to worry about being caught doing something one might have “lied” about valuing is eliminated when telling the truth. On the other end of the truth scale is the external feeling of uncertainty of telling the truth.

This being not wanting to tell/hear the full truth due to the fact that it could hurt more than a lie. While lying on the other hand is sometimes the means to external positivity and happiness for others, over time its effects are always negative. The truth always comes out, or if it doesn’t the internal gut feeling of knowing you lied is a worst effect. Giving the liars the satisfaction of doing it over and over again, while you stand their and take it, will only allow them to further their lies. The first time they lose someone because that person lost respect for them out of their lies will hopefully make them realize the wrong in the situation and teach them how to grow from that. Giving them the opportunity to cause more damage will hurt you more than them. And you leaving the situation will hurt them more than you. There are more cons than pros to unhealthy relationships. One problem people come by is putting the pros before the cons, and using those pros to outcast the cons making it impossible to see the situation in a clear light.

Usually an outside source needs to intervene to tell the person in harm what is going on. The person in harm never likes to hear the others opinion, and it often causes an argument. Later on, the one in harm always thanks the party that that tried to help and apologizes for their stubbornness. There are different types of lies that people can commit. They all have the same outcomes of regret, pain, and internal difficulties. Each type of lie comes with a reasoning and each with a consequence. Two of the most common types are compulsive and pathological. “According to www.truthaboutdeception.com, a pathological liar is someone who lies incessantly for their own advantage and does so with little thought for others. ‘Pathological lying is often viewed as a coping mechanism developed in early childhood . . . a pathological liar is often goal-oriented and often comes across as being manipulative, cunning and self-centred,’ it says. Meanwhile, a compulsive liar is someone who lies out of habit, bending ‘the truth about everything, large and small.

For a compulsive liar, telling the truth is very awkward and uncomfortable, while lying feels right’ ”. Both types are manipulative and harmful, and the effects that come with each still lead to the same kind of distraught. To expand on this idea, most liars lie to the point that it’s even hard for them to comprehend their own lies. This meaning they forget what is the truth and what is a lie because they embed the perfectness of a life imagined with their lies, that they are led to believe that they are perfect and that they don’t lie. These types of people also tend to show aggressiveness towards their peers that recognize their lies and try to civilly talk about them. The aggressiveness is also an effect of lying. Lying is done everyday in many forms whether it be small or catastrophic.

Yet when members of society that hold high positions lie, the obstacles that follow the lies is shown public. People saw this effects in the Clinton case with Monica Lewinsky. This also shows the extent of lies and the different views people can have on the extent of those lies. While some might see something as a lie, others may not, and that is when questions are raised. In Clinton’s case, he lied to the public and made claims that his relations with Monica were not sexual and that she was only an intern. He once stated, “But I want to say one thing to the American people. I want you to listen to me. I’m going to say this again. I did not have sexual relations with that woman, Miss Lewinsky. I never told anybody to lie, not a single time; never”. This claim was repeated multiple times to the audience of the United States, and every time the claim was made, people argued whether or not he was speaking the truth or not. This caused many worldwide debates and eventually Bill Clinton got impeached from presidency, yet still served out his term, for the lies that he committed stating that him and Monica had no unprofessional relations. This is an example of compulsive lying because it is bending the main idea.

He got the opportunity to serve out his term because he clouded his lie with semantics. He used the ambiguity of language to try to hide the actual issue and/or problem. Semantics is also the idea of rephrasing the opposing argument to benefit oneself. He used this fallacy and his reputation of president to manipulate the people of the United States into believing that because there is a limited definition of the word “sex” defined in the dictionary that there is no way to prove that is was a “lie”. That is where lying gets tricky because people’s interpretations are always different. Proving the sunk cost fallacy, lying is something that once you commit it, you cannot take it back. This fallacy teaches one how to accept their lies and how to deal with the costs that come with them.

Their is literally a mistake in the reasoning, meaning the lies, that people tell. Lying pushes you to be a worse version of yourself, sinking one’s good intentions, and turning them into something that will cause them eventual harm. This leads into the fundamental, normative. This makes the claim that telling the truth ought to be the case due to the harm that it causes if one lies, and the burdens that follows after that. Making judgements about what to do or what not to do proves human instinct. When deciding whether or not to lie, people often don’t see the potential of the the truth. They also often tend to block out the affects of their lies and how they hurt other people. The truth of the lies is onceit happens once the push to continue the lies is made easier, and with that each lie digs a deeper hole of damage into the ground.

Some might believe that in a perfect world everyone would tell the truth. But what if hypothetically speaking everyone had to tell the truth and/or everyone could tell when someone was lying. Would this be a good thing or a bad thing? Could be both. If no one could lie, then the internal and external effects that are caused by lying would be minuscule. This would eventually lead to an overall overwhelming sense of internal and external happiness in many people. But, for people who are pathological and compulsive liars the effects could be detrimental. For them it’s hard to adjust to tell the truth, while others could just use a little push to get going. To them, it’s embedded in their brains and in their hearts and it’s a difficult thing for them to change. The process would be troublesome for them, but in the long run it would be healthier not only for themselves but for their peers. So, would it be a bad thing if you could tell when someone is lying? It could teach a lot.

It could teach about the effects of lying and how they are very harmful to one and the people surrounding them.  And it could also make people learn to be the best versions of themselves. Wouldn’t people want a society that everyone could be the best versions of themselves? It’s hard to point out the cons. People lie continuously every day. And the only way that they will learn from their actions is by being caught in the action. Lying needs to be combatted. People lie time and time again to hide from the truth. Hiding from your problems is not healthy, and hiding those problems from the people who care about you is unhealthier.

Lying breaks trust, respect, and bonds that people have with each other. Why do people lie? Who knows. It could be because they are scared to admit the truth,whether it be to themselves or another. Lying is one of those things that leaves a lasting effect not only on yourself, but also on the people you lie to. It makes them question if they are worth the truth, if they really don’t mean that much to you, it hurts them. Maybe even more than it hurts oneself, and those effects are costly. The urge and need to lie is lethal. One first starts lying to their friends, then their family, then in the workplace, then by the time they realize that they messed up, they are left with no one. The respect, the trust, the bonds, all broken. That’s why the realization needs to occur as soon as one can pinpoint it. This will be hard to admit to one or to oneself at the time, but in the long run it is for one’s own good.