Comments on: Why Truth can never be a lie http://yeswekant.com/2009/02/26/why-truth-can-never-be-a-lie/ My year without lying Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:45:44 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Wayne http://yeswekant.com/2009/02/26/why-truth-can-never-be-a-lie/#comment-1070 Wayne Mon, 19 Jul 2010 12:45:44 +0000 http://thecompletekant.com/?p=120#comment-1070 A subject matter that is very close to my heart. The problem I find today is that so much is made into dual dilemmas. And so the question I have is at what level do you consider something a lie if it's not just a black or white issue. For example.; This morning as I left for work my 2 year old daughter ran towards me demanding 'more cuddles' i was already a bit behind schedule and so I gave her a cuddle and recognising her not wanting to stop I put her down and said daddy 'would give her more cuddles when i got home later'. The thing is I knew I would be away for 2 days so in my definition of 'later' I was not being honest, her definition of 'later' is less easy to comprehend but technically wednesday albeit two days away is later. The manipulation aspect then becomes vey important I was taking a literal definition of 'later' to serve my needs. Sometimes silence can be lying when someone fearful of causing upset says nothing. Isn't complicity a kind of lying. I would recommend 'The Idiot' by Dostoevsky it reminds me that however honest I want to be, being in business and not just in the social domain makes not lying far harder to achieve all of the time. yours honestly Wayne A subject matter that is very close to my heart. The problem I find today is that so much is made into dual dilemmas. And so the question I have is at what level do you consider something a lie if it’s not just a black or white issue. For example.; This morning as I left for work my 2 year old daughter ran towards me demanding ‘more cuddles’ i was already a bit behind schedule and so I gave her a cuddle and recognising her not wanting to stop I put her down and said daddy ‘would give her more cuddles when i got home later’. The thing is I knew I would be away for 2 days so in my definition of ‘later’ I was not being honest, her definition of ‘later’ is less easy to comprehend but technically wednesday albeit two days away is later.
The manipulation aspect then becomes vey important I was taking a literal definition of ‘later’ to serve my needs.
Sometimes silence can be lying when someone fearful of causing upset says nothing. Isn’t complicity a kind of lying.
I would recommend ‘The Idiot’ by Dostoevsky it reminds me that however honest I want to be, being in business and not just in the social domain makes not lying far harder to achieve all of the time.

yours honestly
Wayne

]]> By: Ken http://yeswekant.com/2009/02/26/why-truth-can-never-be-a-lie/#comment-295 Ken Sat, 18 Apr 2009 15:35:18 +0000 http://thecompletekant.com/?p=120#comment-295 Kant is not the person to study in terms of truth telling. Read Bonhoeffer's "What Is Meant by 'Telling the Truth'?" for a much better discussion on the subject. Bonhoeffer will not seem nearly as rigid as Kant, but as you read, you'll notice that he pushes the practice of our faith beyond doing and to being. In other words, it is much more significant that Jesus WAS Truth rather than that he told the truth. Of course, he was and did, but Bonhoeffer asserts that we most often find ourselves doing rather than being. I especially appreciate his opening paragraphs in which he discusses the difference between a child being truthful to his/her parent and a parent being truthful to the child. A small child should certainly disclose all information to a parent whenever asked, and a parent should certainly NOT disclose all information to a child without filtering it through his/her love for that child. Emily Dickinson was wise here as she encouraged us to "Tell all the Truth but tell it slant--- Success in Cirrcuit lies Too bright for our infirm Delight The Truth's superb surprise As Lightening to the Children eased With explanation kind The Truth must dazzle gradually Or every man be blind---" Thank you for your posts and for allowing a comment. May God bless you and your family. Kant is not the person to study in terms of truth telling. Read Bonhoeffer’s “What Is Meant by ‘Telling the Truth’?” for a much better discussion on the subject. Bonhoeffer will not seem nearly as rigid as Kant, but as you read, you’ll notice that he pushes the practice of our faith beyond doing and to being. In other words, it is much more significant that Jesus WAS Truth rather than that he told the truth. Of course, he was and did, but Bonhoeffer asserts that we most often find ourselves doing rather than being.

I especially appreciate his opening paragraphs in which he discusses the difference between a child being truthful to his/her parent and a parent being truthful to the child. A small child should certainly disclose all information to a parent whenever asked, and a parent should certainly NOT disclose all information to a child without filtering it through his/her love for that child.

Emily Dickinson was wise here as she encouraged us to

“Tell all the Truth but tell it slant—
Success in Cirrcuit lies
Too bright for our infirm Delight
The Truth’s superb surprise

As Lightening to the Children eased
With explanation kind
The Truth must dazzle gradually

Or every man be blind—”

Thank you for your posts and for allowing a comment. May God bless you and your family.

]]> By: OilIsMastery http://yeswekant.com/2009/02/26/why-truth-can-never-be-a-lie/#comment-225 OilIsMastery Thu, 26 Feb 2009 14:21:06 +0000 http://thecompletekant.com/?p=120#comment-225 Congratulations! The truth is important. At least I believe it is. It must've been difficult considering the biologists tell us our brains "evolved" in order to manipulate and lie. "In 1978, Richard Dawkins and John Krebs pointed out that animals use communication principally to manipulate one another rather than to transfer information." -- Matt Ridley, biologist, 1993 Congratulations!

The truth is important. At least I believe it is.

It must’ve been difficult considering the biologists tell us our brains “evolved” in order to manipulate and lie.

“In 1978, Richard Dawkins and John Krebs pointed out that animals use communication principally to manipulate one another rather than to transfer information.” — Matt Ridley, biologist, 1993

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