I don’t know about you, but when I’m lied to, I feel insulted. It’s like I am so gullible I won’t bother trying to distinguish between fact and fiction.
Even worse I realize the person lying to me may assume I will believe the lie simply because it reinforces something I want to believe so telling me the truth doesn’t matter.
These days it seems I spend a great deal of time trying to determine the truth. Thankfully with the tools we have available, most of the time it is pretty easy. I wonder why more people don’t put in the effort?
The trust of the innocent is the liar’s most useful tool.
Stephen King
My approach is a sanity check. I read or hear something and a bell goes off. That doesn’t sound right or that’s too good to be true, it’s just not logical, so I start checking. It often turns out the information is misleading, partially true or just false. I find today there is too much of the latter.
What makes it worse is repetition. And the whole lie need not be repeated, a key word will do.
“Repeat a lie often enough and it becomes the truth”, is a law of propaganda often attributed to the Nazi Joseph Goebbels. Among psychologists something like this known as the “illusion of truth” effect.
BBC.COM
Mark Twain
“If you tell the truth, you don’t have to remember anything.”
Incivility is typically associated with bad behavior — unkind or disrespectful words or deeds. Lying, by contrast, is not typically considered a form of incivility, but is certainly a type of disrespect. When we lie to another person, we intentionally deceive and manipulate the other into believing a falsehood. Lying and incivility are near neighbors, related by the fact that each is a form of disrespect for another person — a way in which we deny to another the credit they are due.
Consider intentional incivility., This is a form of bullying or browbeating another. It is the intentional belittling of another person in order to silence him or her. The other is made to feel that their views don’t count, or aren’t worth holding or expressing. Now consider lying. When I lie to another, there is something — namely, the truth — that I don’t want them to know. I am, in effect, telling the other person what I want them to believe. I am saying they aren’t worthy of the respect I would be showing if I were to tell them the truth.
https://www.oklahoman.com/story/opinion/2023/03/11/nancy-snow-even-liars-the-uncivil-are-entitled-to-respect/69950662007/#
‘Pathological liar’ is absolutely the toughest individual to deal with as a psychiatrist. Because you can’t take anything they say at face value. And you can’t, you know, fill in their personality. You don’t know what’s real and what’s not.
Dale Archer
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
The cities are full of folks who are here from all over the world so I don’t buy brother Quinn’s argument. Even in places like rural Maine you hear folks speaking a foreign language. The issue goes to facilities being overwhelmed. just ask the mayor of NYC. You just cannot have folks flooding in to the tune of millions per year impacting schools, hospitals, and other facilities.
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“I wish he hadn’t said that.”
Biden, when he says Trump and Hoover were the only presidents to lose jobs in their terms. True, but… Covid. It’s difficult or impossible to make apples to apples comparisons.
Much like it is disingenuous to blame Biden for the world wide inflation caused by Covid. And now Trump claiming credit for the good economy “because the polls show he will be re-elected”?
I voted for Biden and will again. Because I’ve never voted Republican, and because Trump is insane, to say the least. He and his cohorts should be in prison by November.
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Now I could respond as I did last week to you with; “why is political for the GOP in the House to oppose the bill when the Biden folks could have introduced this in 2021–2022–2023”?
Basically, why am I playing politics and you aren’t? Why did Mr. Biden decide now was the time to introduce this bill? Do you think he is in any way playing politics? Was Biden looking at the impact of a porous border on his poll and approval numbers as the reason for this legislation?
The Biden plan allows 5,000 a day to come in and be processed and do what they do–that is 1.8 million annually I believe. Why should the GOP agree to that? Maybe you think it’s acceptable and that’s fine, but others of us do not.
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Is the objection to the numbers or where they come from? If they are processed exactly what is the problem. With a declining birth rate, the US needs immigrants of all types and education. Is the objection because they have no where to go and no jobs? Maybe that should be the focus.
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Great point. We have a massive need for labor in the US and these people who clearly want better lives. Not to mention an effective way to help fix Social Security and counter China. If we managed this better, it would be a win-win for everyone.
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If they are truly an economic benefit then why don’t the folks in the blue states want them is my question–
with leadership we could have been told that like a tornado, hurricane, or flood, this was a national emergency and not specific to 4-5 states–that immigration is a national issue and folks will be sent throughout the country–no state or region should be responsible for all of the folks coming–we are all responsible.
brother Quinn says they are a benefit so should not blue states should be welcoming them with open arms.
just read today the Gov. of MA and Mayor of Boston have agreed that the illegals will be housed in recreation center–not in Newton, Wellsley, Brookline–no-no-they will be sent to Roxbury the historically black section of the city–from Terminal E (international flights) at Logan to Roxbury. Guess whose children get less time at the recreation centre?
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People didn’t want the Irish, Italians or Jews and in many areas the Catholics. What’s new? The concentrated massive numbers are the real problem now.
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For the most part, people crossing the border are not terrorists. They are asylum seekers. It is the moral and legal obligation of the U.S. to accommodate them to a reasonable extent. Many of them are escaping hardships you or I can only imagine.
“Most of them are young men of ‘military age’.”, meant to imply they are invaders. Most of them are just young men who will be sending money back to their relatives, I suppose you have a problem with that too.
“America First” is a fine, patriotic slogan, if you don’t take it too far. Are the immigrants, legal or illegal, a net benefit to the U.S.? Maybe, maybe not. So what? They are people.
“And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of these my brethren, even these least, ye did it unto me.”
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And how do you know all this? Do you know any countries that accept folks just because they show up and claim asylum?
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Cato Institute, hardly a liberal bastion…
“The Most Common Arguments Against Immigration and Why They’re Wrong”,the 37‐page booklet is available both in print and as a free download.
Disclaimer, I haven’t read it yet, but it looks like the/a source for the Robert Reich video.
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AL, I don’t think you quite understand the proposed rule. It is not to allow 5000 illegal immigrants into the country per day. It is a long overdue adjustment to outdated asylum laws that prevented both the Trump and Biden administrations from effectively dealing the overwhelming claims. This limit would put a daily cap at 5000 asylum claims vs the unlimited cap we have now, so it would be real progress. That is why both moderate GOP leaders and Democratic leaders both want it. It is the MAGA faction that is trying to get rid of this proposal because it is the only issue Trump really has to run on since the economy is doing so well. So basically Trump needs the immigration crisis and is blocking a solution so he can get elected and avoid jail. You can’t make this stuff up.
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well taken–good response–why now and not in ’21’–22′–’23?
To me everything is political, so sure Trump wants immigration front and center–Biden wants to go around and say he is responsible for the lower # coming in– according to Sunday’s Post 8 million have arrived since 2021–6 million crossing that we know of and about 2 million got aways.
It should be easy to say “G” that both sides are playing politics–I have no trouble saying it, but also to me 1.8 million is too many as it overwhelms the system to check these folks–listen to the claims–adjudicate where necessary.
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I agree with you Al, it is a complex problem. The numbers have increased in each of the last three administrations. I think during each administration the opposition party was happy with the status quo because it cast a negative light on the White House. During Trump, Democrats got a little too smug with the whole kids in cages thing and now during the Biden administration, Republicans are having fun with the whole sanctuary city things. And to actually change the asylum laws requests a filibuster proof 60 member majority in the Senate. So it has to be bi-partisan. But it should be too. Republican farmers rely on a lot of this labor for their agriculture, just as much as blue and red cities need the labor for construction. Yes, the legislation should have been passed previously, but it looks like we finally have a chance now for bipartisan agreement. I don’t think that chance will be available if Trump wins the election. Then it will just continue to be a mess since his hands will be just as tied with asylum laws (which is why illegal immigration surged during his term too). Or worse, rounding people up out of their houses at gunpoint would be a total disaster for the economy and something that only the most extreme MAGA supporter would want.
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Hey Siri, show me a good article about Trump without mentioning his name…
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A lot of this comes down to are folks telling a lie or are they misinformed? Are they so dug into a position that no matter what you say they will not be convinced. Then of course does it matter? I have found that folks lack information thus a discussion about an issue is sometimes fruitless as it’s emotion and not facts that come forth.
Like brother Quinn I use the common sense approach to many issues. Does this make sense? Now when I hear that illegal immigration (which is now a major issue) is a positive for this country I ask the obvious question; will the administration campaign on not changing policy because it is a net +? The other guy is using immigration as a cudgel with great success and is it because common sense tells us a porous border is not acceptable. So, a less than wholesome person steps into a problem that could have been solved years ago. Sort of like brother Quinn’s SS issues–take the small steps now needed before it becomes a crisis.
When I hear immigration (illegal) is really a net+ for us then common sense says why are the blue sanctuary states trying to move them out? Heck, if it’s good enough for Eagle Pass, TX it should be good enough for Trenton–Newark–NYC.
So, the issue is folks who lie and twist the numbers–interesting fact check by Glenn Kessler in Washington Post Sunday about Biden campaigning on billionaires paying just 8% income tax. When you get to where the Biden folks get their numbers you realize the tricks they use. Trump, why he has a whole bagful of tricks.
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You were a bit all over the place there. But I think we can all agree that the US needs more resources for the border patrol and needs Congress to amend the asylum rules. That is the deal on the table now that is supported by GOP moderates and democrats, but is being blocked by the extremist MAGA wing because it hurts Trump’s election chances.
As far as misinformation and outright lies, there is just nothing comparable from either party to what Trump has done. It is like a real life SNL skit that never ends lol
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