People lie all the time. A friend told me recently that she does not, emphasis on the “does not” eat McDonalds. She said it in such way that even I was grossed out, ashamed, even to admit that I occasionally indulge in the classic All-American meal. But to my surprise, I responded, “omg, really? You should try it sometime” instead of usually agreeing and saying, “yeah it’s gross.” So it came to great surprise that this weekend on her snapstory, there she was. Eating a McChicken and large fries. Don’t know if I can blame that McDonald’s-breakdown-episode on the alcohol or she was lyinnnnnnnng the whole time and is actually a Mickey D’s lover.
I re-watched her story in disbelief as I thought of how awful she had made me feel for liking, hell, even enjoying those late night McDonald’s runs with the besties. So after a few replays and many eyerolls—I started to think why she lied to me? She already knew that I liked McDonald’s so why lie, why not just say, “yeah I’ll have it here and there.” Because this was not about trying to be better than someone else it was more of just lying. No benefit was received on either end because I wouldn’t have looked at her any differently if she would have said she liked it or not, honestly I didn’t care. So why did she lie? Why do people lie in general when not necessary?
The ethics of lying are debated all the time. Should we lie if it benefits us? Should we lie if it benefits the majority or produces the most happiness like many utilitarian’s believe? The truth, as ironic as it might sound is that, we lie because we wholeheartedly believe in what we are telling. We lie because relate in some aspect to the untruth we are telling. We lie because we aspire to be that way. We lie because saying that you’re a vegan and would never eat McDonald’s is much easier than actually being vegan and giving up McDonalds. But because you one day aspire to be that way you tell the lie, because you are working up to that stage—so why not fake it until you make it. Right? Or is it, wrong?
The fact of the matter is that, we are all liars. In our own way- whether we lie about the little things like, what we eat or the larger details about us like, where we come from or who we really are. But what can we do to change once we recognize that we are liars--- do we swear to not lie again? Do we pray to God to forgive us for lying and repent? Or should we take a practical pause before opening our mouths the next time?
With endless ways on how we can mend, it shouldn't be this hard to stop lying. So let's try. Let’s stop fearing rejection, let's stop rejecting ourselves. Let's stop dismissing the things in life we enjoy because we feel that others will judge us. Because the truth is we can’t be honest with each other, we can’t stop lying to each other, because we can’t stop lying to ourselves. I know that it’s easy to lie in a world filled with fake labels, fake identities, fake Instagram accounts and fake Tinder profile descriptions because nothing seems real anymore. But lets us find the strength to fight one of the biggest flaws we have as humans: lying.
