Liar Liar: How to Develop Your Inner Lie Detector
A 2002 University of Massachusetts study about lying found that 60% of people lied during a 10 minute conversation. The average person told two to three lies in that 10 minutes, most didn’t even realize they were doing so, and men and women lied about the same amount.
Psychologist Robert S. Feldman says. “It’s so easy to lie. We teach our children that honesty is the best policy, but we also tell them it’s polite to pretend they like a birthday gift they’ve been given. Kids get a very mixed message regarding the practical aspects of lying, and it has an impact on how they behave as adults.”
You can’t force someone to tell the truth, but Imagine what life would be like with personal lie detectors (perhaps a smart phone application of the future?). With such technology, everyone would be forced to tell the truth at all times, which wouldn’t be very pleasant for some people.
The Lies People Tell
Politicians would find it more challenging to win over voters with stirring speeches. They would instead be judged on their true intent and actions. When a politician says one thing, but means another, your lie detector would go off and you’d hear a “beep!” Personal agendas would become obvious and Washington might actually enact useful legislation.
Husbands, wives, boyfriends, and girlfriends would no longer be able to stretch the truth in order to keep the peace, or hide their behavior. “That other woman doesn’t mean anything to me.” Beep! “I got pregnant by accident.” Beeeeeep!
People would be forced to practice absolute sincerity in the workplace--no more corporate treachery and duplicity. “I love my boss and I’ve never back-stabbed any of my coworkers.” Beep! “Our corporate mission is not mainly about profit”
Beeeeeeeep!
Children wouldn’t be able to get away with anything, and parents would be held accountable for everything.
What about the little lies you tell yourself? Even though they can make life easier to deal with at times, your personal lie detector would help you be brutally honest with yourself, helping you to become self-actualized more quickly (and possibly go crazy from always having to squarely face reality).
Delusion
Delusion can be harmless, such as with children fantasizing, or dangerous, as with conniving, powerful dictators. Someone who is truly delusional can fool a lie detector if they really believe they’re telling the truth, so make sure to buy the Delusion Detector add-on application to cover all your bases. Just be aware that it won’t allow you to wear rose-colored glasses when perceiving the veracity of your love relationships, and will deal a serious blow to excessive romantic fantasy. At least it could potentially save you a lot of heartache.
What is Truth?
There can be different versions of the truth, depending upon one’s perspective, but the truth is usually very simple.
Seasoned liars and sociopaths can be very creative with their version of the truth, giving new meaning to the art of rationalization and deceit, twisting reality to conform to their agenda.
Try to be Understanding
Find it in your heart to feel compassion for those who live a life of denial and delusion. After all, the majority of dishonesty, we believe, is the subconscious defense type used to protect the self from the pain of truth, not the malicious type.
Beneath the self-deception, which most people exhibit in various degrees, there’s a vulnerability and a lack of courage to live life more honestly; it is often learned early in childhood as a coping mechanism. Very few people are capable of living their lives in complete honesty.
After all is said and done, the truth tends to bubble up to the surface. People on their deathbeds realize things that weren’t as obvious before. After they cross over, we believe, based on life between life and past life research, there is no denial, dishonesty, or delusion on the other side. Everyone, regardless of what their faith was (or lack of it) while incarnated, reviews their lifetime and becomes aware of everything they did, to themselves and others, the “good” and the “bad,” not in judgment but for awareness and understanding. Imagine what life would be like if everyone was taught from a young age that everything you say, do, and intend is recorded in an invisible spiritual ledger. If this were true, and we believe it is, no one gets away with anything by pretending their negative actions are justified, trying to evade detection, or confessing their sins.
Dishonesty is one of the more easily discerned personality facets through handwriting analysis, and you have a built-in lie and delusion detector. It’s called your intuition. You can develop it through regular meditation. The more you meditate, the more you will be able to perceive the simple truth about yourself, situations, and others.
Copyright © Scott Petullo, Stephen Petullo
