This maybe true of France, but we're not talking about France. We're talking about America. And in this country, lying to a judge (for instance) will likely get

This maybe true of France, but we're not talking about France. We're talking about America. And in this country, lying to a judge (for instance) will likely get you thrown in jail on perjury charges. Also, the relative permissibility of lying has no bearing on whether or not others choose to trust you. The real question has to do with how these guys manage to maintain the trust of their investors when they're so reflexively dishonest with everyone else in their orbit.