Your Policy

Is there, in your opinion, ever a good reason to lie? Do you lie often? Perhaps you hate the fact that letting others live in an illusion is wrong, regardless of the circumstances.

Why do I want to know this? You should have asked this question since my first few post because this isn't the first time I asked something weird. XD
Well... even I don't know the answer sometimes.

The only time that I feel is appropriate to lie is to spare someone's feelings. Unless the person needs and is seeking honest feedback, then there's nothing wrong with telling someone that they look pretty, or they've done well on a school project, or other things like that.

天 (Caine) said:

The only time that I feel is appropriate to lie is to spare someone's feelings. Unless the person needs and is seeking honest feedback, then there's nothing wrong with telling someone that they look pretty, or they've done well on a school project, or other things like that.

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I always want my friends to be honest with me no matter what I ask as long as they don't exaggerate.

天 (Caine) said:

The only time that I feel is appropriate to lie is to spare someone's feelings. Unless the person needs and is seeking honest feedback, then there's nothing wrong with telling someone that they look pretty, or they've done well on a school project, or other things like that.

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I used to lie to my friends a lot because I didn't want to hurt their feelings. I realize that isn't a good idea and that they usually appreciate the honesty more....even if it hurts initially :>

I don't like to lie, but I do when I have to - depends on the situation really. There isn't quite a yes or no answer for this question for me.

zappyspiker said:

I don't like to lie, but I do when I have to - depends on the situation really. There isn't quite a yes or no answer for this question for me.

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That's fine. If you want, you can just say an approximate for how often you lie.

I can't even remember the last time I lied or for what reason. Its been a looooong time.

There are good reasons to lie, but the vast majority of the time people lie, they don't have a good reason for it.
The general idea though is, never lie. It's not worth it.

The lie I use the most though, is when someone asks me how I'm doing or if if I'm okay, I'll just say I'm okay. If they ask me in person or if it's someone I regularly see IRL.
Internet friends I am always honest with them on that.
I'm just not comfortable with talking to people who know me IRL about that kind of stuff. Like, not at all. I don't feel comfortable telling people if I'm not ok or not feeling well, because then they'll ask why, and I won't be able to answer because I can't talk about it. Then they'll press the issue and just make things really bad for me.

Meloetta said:

Everyone lies; it's an unavoidable side effect of the imprecise methods of communication we use, be it words, body language, and whatever else. I think the trick is to just be aware of it and keep as best control of it as you can.

Personally, I try to say what is on my mind as accurately as I can in as comfortable a fashion as I can. I'm horribly tactless, but I prefer people know where they stand with me and avoid making irritating assumptions, which happens a lot because I leave a great deal out. It's an awkward balance.

Most of my lies are lies of omission. I don't deliberately lead people into thinking certain things about me, but it's an unavoidable side effect because of the way I conduct myself around them. That's just how I am. But lies like that are a two-way thing: if people don't ask, I'm not really responsible for not telling them, so it only becomes a lie of omission if they make that assumption...making it their fault as much as mine.

tl;dr honesty is the best policy, and insanity is a better defense.

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What does "tl;dr" mean?

It means "too long; didn't read"

In this context it's used to denote that the following is a shorter version of the whole post.

Ammako said:

It means "too long; didn't read"

In this context it's used to denote that the following is a shorter version of the whole post.

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Thanks for clearing that up, but I thought the best defense was a good offense. Haha, I'm not sure how that would apply in this case but that's how the saying goes. Maybe insanity is a form of offense? Hrm... I've always been pretty sane I think. Maybe I'm more vulnerable than I thought. Maybe... I'm straying too off-topic. Yeah, I think I'll leave it at that. XD

Lies have their place. If a serial killer asked you where a certain person lives and you where pretty sure he'd be out to murder said person, you would lie to protect said person, wouldn't you?

The only important thing is to lie when there really isn't another way and if you lie in a wrong situation, to be honest about it. After all forgiving exists for a reason.

R.F. said:

Lies have their place. If a serial killer asked you where a certain person lives and you where pretty sure he'd be out to murder said person, you would lie to protect said person, wouldn't you?

The only important thing is to lie when there really isn't another way and if you lie in a wrong situation, to be honest about it. After all forgiving exists for a reason.

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I wouldn't lie, but I would dodge the question... mostly by running away.

I usually don't lie (even if it can hurt someone's feelings), but sometimes I just have to say what people want to hear. Truth isn't always the best option.

Also I think bending the truth is just a way of lying that makes you feel less guilty.

I'd say I am an excellent liar. That being said I don't typically lie, I just don't say everything. My friend in real life said that I don't know when to keep my mouth shut but I feel like it's just the opposite. I feel like if I didn't keep my mouth shut then some shit would go down. For a lot of my personal connections I tend to be a middleman so I get both sides of the story in most situations.

tl;dr I don't lie so much as just don't say everything.