I Admire Honesty And Sincerity

My brother and I were just sitting back, shooting the shit the other night, when the topic rolled around to LIES, or LYING. And we were discussing what the motivation for lying might be. We came to only two conclusions:

1. Protection. The "good" reason for lying is that you are trying to protect someone from some traumatic or unpleasant truth or experience. I'm not talking about "yes, you look wonderful in that dress" when she doesn't. I'm talking about 5 year old Johnny needing to know that you found his pet cat, Fluffy, torn to shreds in the neighbor's yard. Probably can skip that factoid, and just let Johnny think the cat ran off. But this is a tough call, because let's face it-- the sooner humans can adapt to the idea that things die, the better their coping skills should be later on in life. So, thinking you are protecting someone might NOT be a valid reason to lie to them. Maybe they CAN or SHOULD have to deal with it, for their own sake.

2. Getting access to something you have NO right to have. This pretty much covers EVERY situation for lying, barring the one above. It might be access to a person, goods, rewards, respect, etc. If you didn't earn it, you shouldn't have it. The lie is merely a means to an end, an attempt to take a short-cut. Maybe it's trying to avoid taking responsibility for one's actions. Maybe they think they are playing mental chess, and you are a pawn. No matter what excuse is given, the original motivation is the same.