Business

I believe that, sometimes, it is better to tell a lie than to tell the truth. Growing up, we are all taught to embrace the values of integrity and honesty, to always tell the truth and never fib, which worked up until we turned seven. If asked a question, we could just say the truth, no matter how obnoxious, for example, when four, one could comment on an obese man: “Mommy! Look – a fat man… HI FATTY!” but as one gets older, that becomes unacceptable and breaks the codes of society. Yes, telling the truth is very important and should be kept in mind at all times, but sometimes, telling the truth fails at the job to which it has been assigned in society.

One of the most likely places where telling the truth would fail is when answering a question. Many times, when asked a question, the real truth would be impudent. However, by twisting it a little bit, one can easily arrive at a response that will please the other person and make everyone happy. By saying the downright truth, one could offend the other person and possibly instigate violence or hostility. Additionally, sometimes a question can be invasive, and even malignant. Obviously, one would not willingly reveal a deep secret to another, so one might lie about it. Maybe one may tell something similar to the secret, or something different, but not the truth. Even if asked a simple question like ‘where do you live?’ or ‘what is your birthdate?’, one should never tell the truth unless one can trust the asker, as there are scores of potential harassers out there, whose intentions may not necessarily be honorable.

Another time when telling the truth isn’t always the best is in essays – especially the essays that come with a specific prompt and are graded. On standardized tests like the SATs, there is always the daunting essay, which is evaluated for a score and sent to others. And then there’s the scholarly prompt, which often asks one to respond to something that one does not know or care about. Now, if one