If everyone always told the truth

[Recursion]

What would the result be?

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	Collapse of society
	0 (0%)
	Vast improvement of society
	0 (0%)
	No important difference
	0 (0%)
	Truth is so subjective that the question is meaningless
	0 (0%)
	The new Bentley Grand convertible looks amazing
	0 (0%)
	0 DU members did not wish to select any of the options provided.
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[Art_from_Ark]

1. If you had rephrased the question as "What if politicians always told the truth?"

then I would have selected #2, "Vast improvement of society"

[Recursion]

3. But then voters in Ames would never hear "It's great to be back in Ames" (nt)

[Art_from_Ark]

9. I could live with that

[ZombieHorde]

2. The first four options all seem right to me.

I don't know which one to pick.

[JonLP24]

4. Interesting question

I always preferred the type to tell me straight up "no". Or level with me instead of worrying about trying to protect my feelings. The passive-aggressiveness is usually transparent so I know what they want but I hate guessing what other people would like from me. Truth is not something I'm offended by, even less if it isn't true.

Here comes the problem though. So if someone walks up to and asks you where his next victim so he can kill him and you did know -- so lies can become necessary.

A deranged, sick, & twisted person that is honest is still a deranged, sick, & twisted. When you figure what goes behind the reasoning to lies -- like a subcontractor that is a subcontractor to a subcontractor of Halliburton. These lies get so out of control that we play along to it. I always wonder about those that showboat on committees, are they truly upset or are they running for something.

On balance life would be better, truth is better because truth = truth. It is something I find comfort in actually, there have been several unique instances where people didn't believe me based on either a preconceived notion or trust what someone else said on the matter -- it stopped bothering me when I realized reality doesn't change when people believe otherwise.

[Recursion]

5. I think societies are kept together by lies

Whether, to paraphrase a friend of mine, it's the one big lie of totalitarianism or the myriad small lies of capitalism, society and culture only exist because of the lies we are willing to tell each other and not call each other on.

e.g. "Nice to meet you!" (generally, it's probably not, but now we can have a conversation).

[JonLP24]

8. Depends on what you mean

I'm far from innocent in the white lie department "No, of course I'm not mad".

I pretty much avoid the nice to meet you unless it is said to me or it depends. Usually when there are other guests and I feel like leaving, I do. One friend would question why I didn't say bye or he'd complain when others didn't say bye then I saw an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm, "You can't imply bye?" Perfect.

George Carlin also captures my feelings to a lot of these standard greetings.

Sociopaths are experts at using societies' rules against them and they can appear quite charming. Also fun to be around and when they're wrong amazingly are able to trick their victims into feeling sorry for them. Over time the lack of empathy will become apparent.

Under the context of the original question, there isn't a simple answer but if people commonly agreed what constituted good manors, therefore good people, someone could go a long time causing people to believe they're good people.

[pinboy3niner]

6. The Inexact Science of Truthtelling

That's an old title I remember, but it may take me a while to recall the reference. I'm thinking it's about journalism. And it may or may not be relevant here.

[pinboy3niner]

10. Eureka!

The inexact science of truth-telling (Ninth annual William Allen White memorial lecture)

by Jenkin Lloyd Jones

Publisher: William Allen White Foundation, University of Kansas (1958)

Subjects Journalism.

Available from Amazon.

Keeps being reissued in new printings, but no reviews.

[GreatGazoo]

7. I think we each live with at least a little bit of illusion that makes the lives of others

seem easier than they are. A kind of low tech version of the FaceBook effect. People put up a front often that says 'I am okay and on track' -- the truth is often closer to 'I have fears and challenges and some reality-based worries about getting older, getting sick and going broke(r) just like you do.' That kind of truth would bring people closer together in general and allow people to help each other more.

If the media and politicians could not edit and frame issues their way (because that is how they lie without stating untrue things, it is lying by omission) then we would have a much greater level of democracy and less corruption.

[whistler162]

11. Divorce lawyers would be exstatic

New dress -
Wife - Do I look fat?
Husband - You look like a blimp on steroids.

After sex-
Husband - Was it good for you?
Wife - Hmmmm.... what sorry I was thinking about a problem at work.