When are we going to say to our politicians enough of the lies we will not tolerate this any longer?
Political lying has reached endemic proportions and, it's getting worse. I want to make it clear that my gripe isn’t essentially a critique of the merits or not of Brexit or Trump winning in the US. I am using these merely as examples of lying to the public to gain power. We face similar in our own Australian political landscape. Mediscare being a very relevant example.
There is a ground swell building in the UK against the Brexit leave vote. People voted to leave based on what people like Farage (now claiming he 'made' Trump the stupid man) told them. Within a few days the wiser ones started to realise they may just have been sold a pup. So, many are now saying that want a new referendum. This has led to interesting debate within social media circles.
More and more Brits are realising they voted based a pack of lies with absolutely no clue what Brexit would mean for them. They voted on nationalism (which definitely has a place) and immigration (which needs to be controlled). Many voted on the money that would saved as a result of leaving the EU being reinvested in the NHS. Now of course Nige is saying he never promised that. It's BS, he did. Others said they were sick of the EU and their draconian rules and interference. I am with them on that. Then we have those who voted on the basis of racism and hate. Let's not pretend they didn’t. It's not helpful to shy away from reality. Now of course the truth is hitting home. Many of the promises made will not and can not be delivered. They never were going to be. They were lies. Personally, I struggled to understand why anyone would vote on something so important without the facts. It was one hell of a leap of faith. But people did.
Whilst we are at it, why is Nigel Farage still a member of the European Parliament? Happy to take the perks whilst they last? Hypocrite that he is.
We just seen similar in the US. Where the most outrageous lies in the form of promises were made to gain votes. Within a couple of days the back-flips started. They always were going to. This is a small but important example:
What really floored me was when someone last night on twitter (a lawyer no less) stated, “People always vote on lies and half truths aka opinions.” When he was challenged on this point he reiterated, “Arguably all politicians lie.” Certainly a lot do. The lawyers final comment really sums it up. “Which is why votes aren’t invalidated by lying.” In others words, lying is OK that's how the system works.
That prompts me to ask. Is there an acceptable level to this endemic lying that has become par for the course? What lies should be tolerated and what ones shouldn’t? The lies are becoming more and more outrageous. I consider them blatant in the extreme. Have we reached the level yet where we the people on mass say we've had enough? Or, will it take a monumental catastrophe to bring us to our senses?
I understand perfectly why people don’t trust politicians. But hey, we've obviously confirmed it's OK for them to keep lying to us. We vote for them and in the case of Brexit, people think that lying is OK. The lawyer did and others supported him. It’s the old reap what you sow theory. We set the benchmark by what we are prepared to accept. We've accepted it so, we have no one to blame but ourselves.
From what we see being played out on the world stage it seems ‘we’ are suckers. We simply fall for the salesmen’s pitch because they tell us what we want to hear. The collective ‘we’ doesn’t give a rats when someone points out what is being promised is a lie and it can’t be delivered. Far too many support their own side when they lie but attack the opposition for the same. With regards to Trump’s lies, I've had people say to me, “He was only saying that to get the vote. He didn’t mean it.” They seem to think that is acceptable. Well in my book it is not acceptable.
I have a great admiration for those people who are standing up and saying we expect better. The Brexit new referendum people are an example. They are the ones saying we were lied to, we now we want the truth. Then, they want the opportunity to reassess based on facts and be given the opportunity to vote on those facts. We should be appalling that, not attacking them.
People (globally) are saying enough of the lies. Yet, they willingly vote for people who are lying to them and just accept it. Worse, they defend it. I admit I am really struggling to understand the logic of that.
If we are serious about change, we must stand up and be counted. We have to say enough. No more lies. No more opinions. We deal with facts. If we don’t, then don’t be surprised when nothing changes for the better and we continue to be treated like mugs.
It's down to us. Demand better.
