A Case for Lying.

I have been wanting to write this paper for quite some time, but hadn't until now found enough inspiration. I have been inspired lately in particular due to the onerous campaigns being run by our two wonderful presidential candidates, but to be fair, basically any and all politicians. This is just the beginning...

Lie: a false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive; and intentional untruth; a falsehood.

Lying has long been a centerfold of conflict and destruction. In fact, so much trouble has lying caused that it is presented as an art of the Devil, and has found its way in to many a religious verse. “Though shalt not bear false witness against they neighbor” (Exodus 20:16, the eighth Commandment). “Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another.” (Leviticus 19:11) The Koran too strongly attacks the act of lying (2:283; 24:7), and in fact goes so far as to require good Muslims to speak the truth even if it goes against themselves or their own family (4:135). Does this mean that in order to be religious, you have to believe that lying is unequivocally a horrible act? The author would say not. In fact, he would go so far as to say that many times, lying is the moral thing to do. A story is needed:

A young child with a terminal illness has been given one day to live. The child is currently lying in a bed, happy, but full of drugs to keep away the pain. The drugs begin to wear off, the mother wants to say goodbye to a lucid child. As the boy's pain begins to manifest itself he puts on a brave face, he knows something is not right with him, he knows he is different from other boys his age, but he doesn't want his mother to cry, and he does not know that he will be dying today. The boy's pain deepens, and the doctors alert the mother that he will need to be placed back on the drip in the next 5 minutes or he will be in torturous discomfort. The mother, with tears in her eyes looks at her child, tells him she loves him, and gives him a great big hug. The boy, sensing her desperation, and finding her tears different from past times asks the mother a question...”Mommy, why are you crying?”

How should the mother respond? “Honey, after you go under the morphine again you are going to die, and that makes Mommy sad.” or “Mommy is crying because she isn't going to get to see her baby anymore” or even, “I can't tell you why I'm crying sweetheart”. The author thinks not. Would this not be the ideal response? “O baby, I am just thinking of all the fun we are going to have when we get you out of this hospital playing GI Joes, I get to be Snake next time.” The boy smiles, he is placed back under the drip, as he slips into a drug induced pre-death coma he is happy, dreaming of his Mother's beautiful face and GI Joes.

If the reader happens to believe that it would have been better for the mother to respond to the child in one of the three preceding ways then he would hope that the reader fails in any attempt to have children, or, if the reader does have children, that he or she should be struck mute from this point until death. One may respond to this analogy by calling it extreme, the one in a million case for which nothing else should be based, or the one time where God may forgive you. However, it presents an idea that applies not only in this situation, but in many more.

For the rest of this argument, it will be assumed that ALL lies have a “sinful” element to them, and that they are inherently wrong. This will do away with any argument against the author stating that there is simply a difference in beliefs about what constitutes lying, and whether or not it is right or wrong.

Why would it be appropriate in this situation, for the mother to lie to her child? The author believes that this situation allows for such action because the welfare of the child is at stake. The mother may incur some sort of penalty for her lie, whether it be a stained conscience, penance, or punishment directly from God. It may be possible that in certain religions a person may believe that there is no possible avenue through which one could receive grace after knowingly committing such a sin. In this case, particularly if the punishment for lying was eternal torture, the author believes it would be reasonable for the mother to tell her son the truth, even though it would pain him greatly in his final moments, because her eternal life is worth more than 5 minutes of peace for her son. However, such beliefs are few and far between, if they even exist. In ANY other belief system not so extreme, the author believes that there would always be an opportunity afforded those who believe such a lie to be wrong, to repent. Immediately following the child's death a prayer can be said, and with that the matter is over. Or, whatever the respective religion calls for. Therefore what would be balanced on both sides of the scale would be the child's welfare, or the momentary state of sin in which the mother will find herself. Most religions, however, imply in no way that one single lie makes or breaks anything significant for any person. In general, it is the act of “being a liar” that is despised. After all, avoiding sin is impossible, and lying is just a sin.

Does this then mean that any act of lying is no longer a question of right or wrong, but...more right? or...more wrong? The author believes so. In any situation life brings that spawns a bifurcation of morality, it would seem that what needs to transpire is a weighing of both the benefits and consequences of the issue at hand.

From this point, it is important to note that the rest of this argument will in no way be dependent on the method by which a situation involving a moral dilemma is considered. Naturally, it is a combination of beliefs, circumstances, heritage, upbringing, personal history, etc. that creates an individual's system by which he or she measures any given circumstance. The author simply wishes to contend that there are NO ABSOLUTES, and to think otherwise would be sentencing that poor child to the most terrifying experience known to man, right before his death.