"Despite George Washington and the cherry tree, we no longer have a society especially consecrated to truth. The culture produces an infinity of TV shows and movies depicting the importance of honesty. But they're really talking only about the importance of being honest about your feelings. Sharing feelings is not the same thing as telling the truth. We've become a country of situationalists."
- Maureen Dowd, "Oprah! How Could Ya?", The New York Times, January 14, 2006
As Maureen Dowd describes him in her January 14th essay, the reporter David Rosenbaum was amazingly dedicated to the truth.
But it's the paragraph above that hits upon the core challenge of our time. We are rapidly sliding down a very slippery slope. If we get to the point where we can no longer trust people to tell us the truth - because truth telling has been so devalued by society - then trust, itself, will disappear.
And when trust disappears, then all we are left with is The Law of the Jungle. Bye, bye civilization.
Here's more from Ms. Dowd's column...
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Journalism, politics and publishing have been tarred by scandals that have revealed a chilling insensitivity to right and wrong. Random House isn't concerned that an author makes up stuff in a book labeled nonfiction; it just kept counting the money after The Smoking Gun exposed James Frey's lies about his own life.
When Mr. Frey went on "Larry King Live" with his mom to defend his book's "essential truths," Oprah Winfrey called in to back him up. She sounded disturbingly like Scott McClellan. Despite doubts about facts in the book, she said, "the underlying message of redemption" still "resonates" with her.
She should have said: "Had I known that many parts were fake, I wouldn't have recommended the book to millions of loyal viewers. I wouldn't have made this liar a lot of money." She should take a page from Stephen Colbert and put the slippery Frey on her "Dead to me" list."
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I honor and respect all who are dedicated to keeping truth telling alive...to asking the hard questions of our leaders...including questions about the underlying motives for their actions...past, present, and future.
To those who think they are telling the truth but aren't, all I can say is... Forgive them, father, for they know not what they do.
And to those who know they are not telling the truth but act as if they are, all I can say is... It's not too late for you to save yourself from eternal damnation. Just get in touch with your "inner George Washington".