I could set my clock by Fandango’s Provocative Question (actually, I probably could, although I never tried). But Wednesay’s mean just one thing. Today, Fandango asks:
Is it even possible to live a normal life and to not ever tell a lie?
I don’t think I get through each day without telling a lie of some sort. As Fandango’s blurb says, to avoid hurting another person’s feelings, or somesuch. In a marriage, for sure, there are certain questions where there is a standard answer. “Of course not, darling, your ass looks every bit as pert as it did the day we first met”, for example.
Whereas, if we gave the question any serious thought, our answer would be “what exactly are you hoping to achieve by asking me a question which can only have one answer? Are you trying to provoke a row?”
But we keep the peace. There are other lies:
- It is all the fault of the Christians…
- It is all the fault of the Jews…
- It is all the fault of the Muslims…
or, along a different tack:
- It is all the fault of the gays…
or even:
- There are WMD in Iraq. Do you remember that one?
which are simply unacceptible. So what’s the difference between the two?
I’m interested in people’s views here, but for my money, the difference is the severity of the consequences. Is someone going to be harmed as a result of the lie? What do you think?