3 ms·

The shitty metaphor of tightening your belt at home extended to government has done a lot of damage, and that metaphor is used by politicians to look "responsib

The shitty metaphor of tightening your belt at home extended to government has done a lot of damage, and that metaphor is used by politicians to look "responsible" to people who don't understand. Unless you really go whole-hog on the metaphor: if the son sells apples to the dad to make a living, and the dad decides to cut back on apple buying, then the son loses his income. Then the son can't buy the cucumbers the dad was selling him, and the dad is even worse off. There is no-one outside the house.

api 8y ago
There seem to be many politicians including the US Republican Party that just lie. They implement aggressively Keynesian or heavily deficit spending based policies while toting a "fiscal responsibility" line and sounding like advocates of austerity.
- afterburner 8y ago
  Republicans are not Keynesian; they push for tax cuts on the rich at all times, no matter the economic conditions. They also do not support investment that would seriously help unemployment in dire times (eg. Great Recession).
- zanny 8y ago
  If there are no consequences to lying and lying gets you power and influence you are at a disadvantage to not lie.
  - api 8y ago
    I think there are consequences, but unfortunately they are more subtile, long term, and society wide rather than immediate and felt directly by the liars. Lies told by politicians erode the overall trust basis of society over time, leading in the end to major social breakdowns or even civilizational collapse.
  - bobthechef 8y ago
    Wrong. Lying is always and everywhere immoral (yes, even when it is understandable and forgivable such as the classic Nazi thought experiment). Not only is it intrinsically immoral as it perverts the functions of speech and communication, but it has long term consequences like the undermining of trust and social relations and the further corruption of the liar's character and the scandalous contribution to a degenerate ethos in society where truth is treated as selectively important. Our present day culture of sophistry and bullshit with its cavalier attitude toward the truth is what you can expect. Mental reservation, on the other hand, is sometimes justified.
    - api 8y ago
      > Our present day culture of sophistry and bullshit with its cavalier attitude toward the truth is what you can expect. It's too bad religion is so obsessed with not being gay as the most important of all moral issues. Our culture of lying is a real moral crisis with real consequences. I have never once heard any religious figure take a strong public stand against it. If anything most seem willing to lie in service of their own causes.

api 8y ago

There seem to be many politicians including the US Republican Party that just lie. They implement aggressively Keynesian or heavily deficit spending based policies while toting a "fiscal responsibility" line and sounding like advocates of austerity.

afterburner 8y ago
Republicans are not Keynesian; they push for tax cuts on the rich at all times, no matter the economic conditions. They also do not support investment that would seriously help unemployment in dire times (eg. Great Recession).
zanny 8y ago
If there are no consequences to lying and lying gets you power and influence you are at a disadvantage to not lie.
- api 8y ago
  I think there are consequences, but unfortunately they are more subtile, long term, and society wide rather than immediate and felt directly by the liars. Lies told by politicians erode the overall trust basis of society over time, leading in the end to major social breakdowns or even civilizational collapse.
- bobthechef 8y ago
  Wrong. Lying is always and everywhere immoral (yes, even when it is understandable and forgivable such as the classic Nazi thought experiment). Not only is it intrinsically immoral as it perverts the functions of speech and communication, but it has long term consequences like the undermining of trust and social relations and the further corruption of the liar's character and the scandalous contribution to a degenerate ethos in society where truth is treated as selectively important. Our present day culture of sophistry and bullshit with its cavalier attitude toward the truth is what you can expect. Mental reservation, on the other hand, is sometimes justified.
  - api 8y ago
    > Our present day culture of sophistry and bullshit with its cavalier attitude toward the truth is what you can expect. It's too bad religion is so obsessed with not being gay as the most important of all moral issues. Our culture of lying is a real moral crisis with real consequences. I have never once heard any religious figure take a strong public stand against it. If anything most seem willing to lie in service of their own causes.