People seem too ready to lie when what they're lying about is a small matter.
I was interested in the interest in lying. My first article, back in March was on lying, and my last was also on lying but what caught my attention were some postings on my article on lying and honesty . Some wondered about lying for trivial reasons and I looked for good examples.
One of my favorite servers at my favorite lounge helped me out--thanks, Andrea. She told me that aside from lying about one's age to get served, people lie to her to get a drink or another drink. Since you can get a very good manhattan for a bit over six bucks, we can put an actual price on these lies--oh, and lower still for beer.
So, would you lie to save your skin? Naturally. Would you lie to save your job? Almost certainly. Would you lie to get a month's free rent? Probably. How far down are you willing to go? Would you lie to get a free drink? A free newspaper?
Of course, you're not supposed to lie for any reason, but let's be realistic. The question, then, is one of scale, and where it gets tricky is who you're willing to lie to. Maybe not the tax people or a cop, but how about to a server in a lounge? So is it a question of the penalty of getting caught? I'm afraid that's probably right. Servers in lounges and restaurants just can't do much to you.
Is there any virtue in telling the truth only because you're afraid of the consequences? I'd say not, but that seems to be how many people think.
Speaking of consequences, the server also told me people lie to her about how much they've had to drink and she's often followed individuals to their cars to try to prevent drunk-driving. What's that all about? Lying to save cab fare? Lying to save face? Lying to not be told what to do by the woman who served your drinks? All of the above?
Consider this: if the stakes are at the top end of the scale, it doesn't seem wrong to lie. If the stakes are around the middle of the scale, lying seems wrong and we think carefully about doing it. But it appears that if the stakes are at the low end, we're back to lying not seeming wrong. What's this say about us?
