Telling lies.

Discussion in 'Ethics' started by Bilby, Feb 19, 2012.

  1. HeathenHippie

    HeathenHippie Member

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    You might consider fleeing before that cloud of chlorine gas gets to your neighborhood. :)
     
  2. walsh

    walsh Senior Member

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    And still I can see a lot of good coming out of being honest in that situation. Assuming she is going for a job interview, your comments could win her a job. And many people would say that simply to be honest is to be moral - your sister might just appreciate your honesty.
     
  3. Invisible Soul

    Invisible Soul Burning Angel

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    Exactly. I can only speak for myself, but I'd much rather be told things as they are. The brutal truth if need be. Rather than have things sugar coated in an attempt to make me feel better which usually doesn't work anyway. I always appreciate honesty, even if what I'm hearing is something that's unpalatable and hurtful. Dishonesty is something I can't respect, even if done with "honourable" intentions.
     
  4. lovelyxmalia

    lovelyxmalia Banana Hammock Lifetime Supporter

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    It is unfortunate, but most people can't handle the truth (all movie quotes aside please :D )

    I know who I can and can not lie to. I never lie to people I care about and I never sugar coat anything with them, either.

    However, I am a good judge of character...I know the people who can't handle honesty. And I'm not saying I lie to them...but I will stop being honest (or stop talking all together) depending on the circumstances.
     
  5. arthur itis

    arthur itis Senior Member

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    There's a difference between honesty and disclosure. Honesty is to be truthful. Disclosure is to spill the beans. Honesty is almost always a good thing (except in those 'rare' cases where being honest will get someone killed, hurt, etc.). Disclosure can be a mistake, depending upon the circumstances.
     
  6. The Imaginary Being

    The Imaginary Being PAIN IN ASS Lifetime Supporter

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    i was asked of an occasion where it may have been unsuitable

    assume none of the above

    you know she loved it

    it would break her heart to know you didn't.

    anyways - i'm a consequentialist

    i believe so long as the result is moral

    the act can be unmoral.
     
  7. The Imaginary Being

    The Imaginary Being PAIN IN ASS Lifetime Supporter

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    people who tell me i'm wrong anyways are dumb

    there are no right or wrong answers.

    if one believes this

    one believes we all adhere to the same values

    values they perceive

    in which case they are a tyrant

    and this is unmoral leadership at its core :mickey:
     
  8. walsh

    walsh Senior Member

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    What does the truth matter anyway? You're talking about your own feelings, which more than likely came from somewhere else - your sister did you a favour or was nice to you, or the coat manufacturer killed your dog. If you say "I don't like it" and it's true, you're still not telling her why you don't like it. You'll never get to the real truth of the situation even down to the biochemical or quantum level of explanation.

    Maybe these 'immoral' people realise this shallowness of truth, and that more important are your sister's feelings with what you are about to say to her. But in fact our love of truth comes from this exact same place, to be employed as a mantra when it is most convenient.
     
  9. Invisible Soul

    Invisible Soul Burning Angel

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    I was going to make THAT movie quote, so be glad you stopped me in advance! lol :p

    I think because I'm in an eternal state of pain, being told something I don't want to hear can hardly make things worse for me. Also more importantly, I've always felt that you should always treat others the way you wish yourself to be treated. I wouldn't want anyone to lie to me, so therefore I myself would never lie to anyone else.
     
  10. stoner oxy80

    stoner oxy80 *"Senior~Stoned~Member"*

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    i have to lie everyday it,s part of being an addict. i,m not proud of it at all. but so far no one else is being hurt.
     
  11. arthur itis

    arthur itis Senior Member

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    All I ask for when I pray, steady rollin' woman gonna come my way.
    Need a woman gonna hold my hand, won't tell me no lies, make me a happy man.
    Ah ah Ah ah ah ah Ah ah ah ah Ah ah ah
     
  12. dark suger

    dark suger Dripping With Sin!

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    A while ago I lied to see if I would be good at it and I really was I was soooo good at it I like scaired myself I guess I have an honest face
     
  13. storch

    storch banned

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    What if I am selling a product, and I guarntee that you will stop smoking if you use it, and that if you don't stop smoking, I'll refund your money in full. And let's say that it doesn't help you to quit at all.

    So you call me to tell me that the product failed and that you want your money back. And let's say that I ask you how long a period you stopped for, and you tell me something like four hours. Then I inform you that you did indeed stop smoking, and that I made no claim as to how long you would stop for.

    Did I lie? Or did you not ask enough questions?
     
  14. storch

    storch banned

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    And what if I'm selling something that you ingest, and in my advertisement, I say, "And our coffee doesn't contain ammonia; never did, and never will!"

    Now because I know how fickle people can be, I know that they're going to assume that other brands of coffee must have ammonia in them for me to make a claim like that, and that they'll buy mine to be safe.

    Is that a lie? I told the truth.
     
  15. Bilby

    Bilby Lifetime Supporter and Freerangertarian Super Moderator

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    A similar situation in Australia a while ago when a chicken producer claimed their chicken were produced without growth hormones. Such a practise has not been legal for the last forty years.
     
  16. HeathenHippie

    HeathenHippie Member

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    Here in the US where poultry growth hormones have been illegal for quite a long time it's common to see packages touting the lack of them. Or candy being labeled "A Fat Free Food!", plant products labeled "No Cholesterol!", and so on.
     
  17. walsh

    walsh Senior Member

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    "Fat free" is very misleading. I don't blame the advertisers because I would probably do the same thing and there's no law against it, but if you're fat and you don't know much about metabolism you'd probably think anything fat free is good for you even though it has loads of sugar and carbs.
     
  18. europa

    europa Member

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    I hate telling lies, but in such a society and during the interaction with social people, you have to know how to lie harmlessly and how to tell others' lies.
     
  19. Bilby

    Bilby Lifetime Supporter and Freerangertarian Super Moderator

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    What about fantasy lies? There used to be an old man who lived next door to me who made up stories about having been both a mechanic and a carpenter just to impress me. He had been neither just a harvest laborer on the local market gardens. He was actually quite good at what he did for a living.
     
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