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Joe Lied, People Died
You know this guy—the fellow who seems to be embedded in your life because he’s connected to your group of friends. Or he’s the
member of your family that everyone tolerates because no one knows how to keep him away from family events. He can be very funny and charming at times and get along with people, but there’s one thing that people cannot stand about him: he’s a liar. We all know someone just like that.
Some of us think he’s been lying since he spoke his first words. Early on, the lies were probably innocent enough: embellishing a story, making it funnier, more dangerous, more intriguing. When he got “oohs” and “aahs” for those stories, he decided that he could get more attention by dressing up his stories even more: he’d make up stories whole-cloth. Or he’d lie to avoid looking bad or getting into trouble. By the time he reached his teen-age years, lying became natural for him. People rarely questioned his stories, either because they had no idea how easily he lied, or they were reluctant to challenge him, or they simply had given up on learning the truth. So they just went along. When people commiserated about his chronic lying, someone inevitably would say, “That’s just Joe.”
Now the “guy” is the President of the United States, and sadly, no one is surprised that he’s lying, mostly under stress, but often just because the lies come easily to him. We don’t know if he knows the difference anymore between the lies and the truth. In some cases, people may be supplying him with those lies, and we can’t know for sure if he realizes they aren’t true. Those people who work for him know the job expectations: if you disagree with him, and he discards what you’ve said, you just go along to get along. He just becomes more stubborn if you persist. So they choose to lie, too.
* * * *
People who like Joe might first say, “Well Trump lied, too.” Most of the “lies” identified with Trump were foolish statements, and didn’t put people’s lives at stake. Besides, Joe’s our guy now. Let’s stick with that fact.
So if someone challenges you on the lies he tells, and how significant they are, you can provide this list, this list and this list. To save you some time, I’ve created a list that only includes Afghanistan and those issues that I see as serious untruths:
- We take full responsibility (while they blamed Donald Trump).
- Our efforts, including the airport, are under control (while the facts on the ground show thousands of people trying to enter the airport, and Americans don’t have a way to reach the airport).
- The Taliban is allowing passage to Americans and Afghan allies with papers (while the Taliban beat and kill people at checkpoints).
- People are not stranded (which was Jen Psaki’s effort at wordsmithing).
- Our allies are not questioning our credibility around the world (while several of them have expressed their outrage).
- We have plans to apply international pressure on the Taliban to cooperate (when the Taliban couldn’t care less about the opinions of world leaders).
- We’ll provide close air support for the Afghan military (which was withdrawn almost immediately).
- We have to negotiate with the Taliban because they are in control of the country (even though the Taliban have no cares about lying).
- It was wise to give up Bagram Air Base (which is foolish on its face).
- Providing a list of people to the Taliban who would be entering the airport should ensure their safe passage (which could become an assassination list).
- He was obligated to act because of Trump’s agreement with the Taliban (in spite of the many Trump Executive Orders he had revoked).
- The Taliban can be entrusted to guard the airport perimeter and screen those who enter (as members of IsisK set off suicide bombs and killed 13 military and a large number of Afghans).
- We expected events to unfold this badly.
- We have contingency plans.
The last two, in my estimation, would be listed under CYA attempts.
Although I said I would limit the list to Afghanistan, you can go to the links to see the lies regarding neo-Nazis, the recovering economy, China’s threat, Antifa and other riots, Hunter Biden’s laptop and business dealings and election reform. These are only a partial list.
* * * *
You might think I wrote this post to antagonize you, but my reason is quite the contrary. The truth is that Progressive lying is baked into the cake. I say that with great reluctance and sadness. But on a recent Powerline podcast, Steve Hayward, Lucretia and Michael Anton, all people that I respect, stated that lying has been a part of the Progressive agenda for a long time—and it still is today.
I don’t think we can stop Joe and his administration from lying. But we need to make sure we make life very, very difficult for him. The mainstream media is on a mission against him, and although they will give up their attacks on him when events calm down (which won’t happen for a while), we need to set the example of continuously challenging him with questions. We need to encourage the media to join in on our attacks. We must be unrelenting, direct, persistent and clear, and tell our Republican senators and representatives to do the same. Joe was complaining about how people were not being very nice to him; we need to continue being “not nice.” In time, he will lose his temper, say something even more unacceptable, and send the message to the country (and our allies) that he simply does not care what they care about or think.
For ourselves, we need a change of attitude. Instead of obsessing and complaining about his lies and deceptions, we must recognize them and make a note of them. We must remind ourselves that although Progressives choose deception, we will turn those lies against them. We will choose integrity; that although they prefer taking the easy way out, we are willing to take the high road.
We will speak the truth.
And if they won’t hold each other accountable, we will do it for them.
[photo from unsplash.com]
Published in Politics
They lie to us, they lie to each other, and ultimately they lie to themselves.
“Jonocchio” has the lie capacity of Bill Clinton or Obama, but without the smoothness of Clinton or Obama.
When I say we shouldn’t obsess about their lies, I’m not saying they aren’t horrible. I hate lying, almost more than any other act. But agonizing about their behavior will change nothing. So we’re better off transforming their unconscionable behavior, at least in our own minds, into the unforgiveable, and take action to stop them. I think that’s a much better use of our energy and disgust.
Excellent post, Susan. I swear, your posts are getting better all the time. At your age (I mean that in the best sort of way), that’s quite an accomplishment. By the way, I love your new avatar. Y0u’re a pistol.
You are so darned sweet, Kent! I appreciate the praise very much.
Tragedy is baked in at this point. We’ve lost 13 service men and women. A much larger number of civilians have been killed. I trust no numbers at this point. This will reverberate through time as ISIS prisoners were released and 100,000 (OAC wants 200,000) Afghanis are being brought here with about the same amount of vetting as those presenting themselves at the southern border and being spread throughout the country. And so on and so forth. Biden’s lies are nothing. Biden’s actions are everything. Same was true of President Trump.
You could also say that Biden’s not acting is everything. But I also think the lies count. The world now knows he’s a liar.
I think @susanquinn that the our progressive élite political and cultural overloads will now start suffering from what Gen. Heinz Guderian termed: “revenge of reality.” No matter how the left spins it, gravity still works, basic principle of STEM, sociology and economics still apply, there are only two biological genders, human nature has not changed – no matter how many you kill, there are no unicorns, and you can’t depend on happy thoughts and good wishes to get you through, to name but a few realities they choose to ignore. Unfortunately, we will all have suffer through this as well, for a while anyway.
I haven’t heard that term before, and I so appreciate it in this context. I must believe that the Left will eventually be torn apart, because at some point socialism/Marxism always fails. Unfortunately, we are being dragged down that path with them. All we can do is repeatedly be part of the movement that calls them out, regularly and relentlessly. Thanks, @ronin.
This is particularly disingenuous, because controlling the country does not convey legitimacy, and normally under such circumstances (e.g. Burma) it is up to the governments of outside nations to decide upon conferring recognition of new governments, and often does not do so.
Odd. I was told by Leftists and Never Trumpers that Joe was going to restore character and competence to the White House.
I’m still waiting …
“Biden Lied” scans better.
I can’t believe that anyone still thinks Biden thinks anymore. He is obviously declining mentally, and he simply cannot be running things. I wonder who really is. Valerie Jarrett/Barack Obama? Maybe.
Another home run from Thomas Sowell. And voters do want the impossible. They want to believe that government can give them things but only other people will have to pay for them. They want to believe that government can raise taxes on a business and it won’t increase costs for everyone who consumes the products or services the business provides.
Yes, it is awful when an American president lies to us, but a president’s supporters will always find a way to justify it. It’s only harmful when a president that one didn’t vote for lies, apparently. My guy’s lies are charming.
This is why other countries such as China want to step in and support them. This is also why the Taliban wants in at the UN . . .
Great article. I find it hard to believe that Biden is making any decisions except the stubborn unmovable ones to turn Afghanistan over to the Taliban. Why on earth would he do that? Because he didn’t make that decision either, even though he insisted on it, the Chinese did. How else can it be explained? Even Biden or his handlers could not benefit by complete and utter failure, turning over the weapons, the money and the base.
I have found that I when have to work with people who dissemble, it’s best to put them on hard defense. These are situations where you cannot walk away for other reasons, but do not have to make a specific deal “or else”. It’s best to start with, “how do I verify what you’re saying?” Unabashedly moving on to”look when you told me X, it’s Y. Since I cannot rely on what you say, I will have to independently verify everything you claim.” Then”now we’re going to go through everything and compare to your claims to the facts.” That’s the hardest hit to a serial liar, being told to their face, that you know they are lying and are going to roast them slowly digging out the truth. The humiliation. Neither of you can leave, for external reasons. So you make their life miserable. It’s a lot of work for you, because you have to be prepared, but it’s priceless. ….And they will hate you with the burning fury of a thousand suns, and not be able to do anything about it.