A little fabrication is mandatory in order to function within society. In fact, one social psychologist studying liars found that people who lie are often more popular than their honest peers. Telling white lies here and there keeps others happy and keeps us in their good graces. The trick is not to go overboard with the faux compliments, otherwise you might end up with constant dinner invites from an inept cook or a room filled with owl figurines. Maybe that’s what people mean when they say there’s no such thing as a harmless lie.
Are We a Society of Compulsive (White) Liars?
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i think there's more to truth than words. maybe your words are lies, but your behaviour as a whole might better communicate your intention. it depends on the situation, i suppose. if the person asking wants verbal honesty, then be verbally honest. but sometimes, that's not the case. :)
As a professional diplomat I also lie most of my time. I'm not even certain if most of my lies could be labelled as "white lies". At least some of them are a bit more severe. But anyway, I am not ashamed because of it. - That's my profession, I just cannot do it the other way round, because in such a case I would cause serious perturbances in the relations between both sides I represent.
In response to Kaymee: if you don't like what you are eating and tell the hostess it's fine, that's a lie...whether you call it white or not, you are still lying. I sincerely hope you are not in marketing and sales if you view the profession as a bunch of lies. If so, you must have lied your way to several jobs by now.
I don't consider lies "little" or as having a color. If you don't like what you are eating, just tell them that it's different or fine or whatever. I believe that lying is one of the major problems with our society today. As a profession, we call it marketing and sales. The International community does not believe a word we say. Why? Because we lie all the time...for the sake of " " (you name it). M. Scott Peck wrote a sobering book on this topic called "The People of the Lie". Read it if you dare!
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