Respect for the truth is a prerequisite for harmony | Opinion
One hundred years ago, in 1923, the great American humorist Will Rogers wrote in one of his syndicated newspaper columns, “If you ever injected truth into politics you have no politics.” His subject was the work of Dr. Robert House, a proponent of using scopolamine as a truth serum in criminal interrogations. Rogers wondered playfully what would happen if one injected truth serum into other folks, like Hollywood actors, real estate agents and politicians.
With a single sentence and tongue planted firmly in cheek, he dismissed the idea of using truth serum in politics because lying is the very essence of politics. Later in the same article he wrote, “Humanity is not yet ready for either real truth or real harmony.” Well, a hundred years have gone by. Are we ready yet?
It’s remarkable how long it’s been a running gag that it’s normal for politicians to lie. We’ve all heard the old joke that the best way to tell if politicians are lying is to see if their lips are moving. It’s funny, but at the same time it’s kind of awful.
Personally, I’ve believed for some time that in a sensible arrangement, those in government and those running for elective office would be required to tell the truth when speaking to the public. After all, it’s illegal for the rest of us to lie during testimony in court, during the course of an investigation or when registering to vote, or to make false claims to the federal government.
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Speech from the governed to those doing the governing is tightly regulated, but speech from those in government to the rest of us, the ones they govern, is by comparison practically unregulated. Why not just place candidates under oath when they run for office and make telling the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth part of an elected official’s oath of office? Again, I’m talking about a more sensible arrangement than the one we have now.
Not every politician lies at the drop of a hat, of course, but we can all recall some serious whoppers. The current headliner is New York’s George Santos, who, it’s widely reported, built his successful campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives on a dazzling collection of false claims, or as he described them, embellishments. Other examples come to mind.
But let’s be honest, there are plenty of other folks who bend, stretch or break the truth. As I write this, virtually every news outlet is carrying the story that Fox News' on-air reporting about the 2020 presidential election results didn’t always match what its hosts and management agreed, off the air, to be true. Apparently, Fox feared its audience would switch stations to find the version of the news it preferred. There was the bottom line to consider.
That raises an important question: Do we actually want to hear the real truth, the one that’s supported by evidence, by facts, by the established record? It seems that in many cases, some of us don’t.
In her signature song "Don’t It Make My Brown Eyes Blue," Crystal Gayle begs, “Tell me no secrets, tell me some lies. Give me no reasons, give me alibis.” Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie urges, “Tell me lies, tell me sweet little lies.” Jack Nicholson’s character in the movie "A Few Good Men" shouts from the witness stand, “You can’t handle the truth!” It’s a familiar notion that an appealing falsehood delivers more comfort than the real, hard-edged, honest-to-God truth.
And what of that “real harmony” Will Rogers wrote we weren’t yet ready for 100 years ago? It’s hard to see today how humanity can possibly reach real harmony until we develop greater respect for the real truth and cut way back on all the BS, of which we seem to have a growing abundance.
Dennis G. Hall was formerly vice provost for research, dean of the Graduate School, professor of physics and professor of electrical engineering at Vanderbilt University. At the end of 2015 he retired from Vanderbilt, where he is now dean and professor emeritus.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Opinion: Respect for the truth is a prerequisite for harmony
