I have a confession to make. Over the festive season I’ve hidden a box of my favourite chocolates to prevent them being scoffed down by the family. There are plenty of other sweet treats in the house but I’m planning to occasionally savour these particular delights over the coming months. If I’m careful I’ll get through to the spring equinox before they run out. I don’t take satisfaction over deceit as it takes a tad of the joy away, and I fully accept that compared to other deceptions my efforts to deceive are small fry, but is any untruth acceptable?
Little White Lies
Children typically start to lie as early as two years old when their distruths are simple and often transparent as they develop their cognitive abilities and understanding of social interactions, such as to avoid getting in trouble. As they grow and develop, they begin to appreciate that lying can help them avoid punishment, gain rewards, or navigate social situations. It’s probably been part of human behavior since the dawn of time and the various contexts in which lying occurs are fascinating aspects of psychology that underscores social dynamics. However, as an educator it is important to guide children to understand the importance of honesty and the potential consequences of lying, helping them develop a sense of integrity and trustworthiness. If nothing else they should learn that being caught out telling a fib can get them into big trouble.
I’m used to getting some bizarre and rather unbelievable excuses for not submitting homework on time; leaving bags on buses, accidentally putting the work in the washing machine or having an IT calamity. Even poor Zebedee, the school well-being dog, has been blamed in the past. As I’m never really able to test the validity of the excuse, my usual response is a Roger Moore-style raised eyebrow and a note in their journal reminding them of the importance of supporting learning through homework. The best of tall tales get shared in the staffroom and are the source of much merriment.
Fabrications
I will hopefully never put myself in the position of a certain vicar who’s recently been forced to apologise after telling a group of schoolchildren aged 10 or 11 that Father Christmas was not real. As a mother I kept the myth alive for almost two decades for my daughter who delighted in the magic and mystery of the annual traditions. As a teacher I am content to neither confirm or deny his existence, I merely suggest it’s not part of the lesson and move on.
The English folklore around Father Christmas sprouted from a pagan festival to celebrate the winter solstice and a traditional tale rather than a lie intended to deceive. This and the legend of Santa Claus, believed to be based on St. Nicholas, have snowballed into the modern, heavily commercialised festival of excessive shopping and lavish gifts. A grim analysis for the Guardian found the average Briton’s consumption on Christmas Day causes 23 times more greenhouse gas emissions than a regular day. It’s simply an excuse for overconsumption with bells on.
Omissions
Young people are taught that if they work hard to gain qualifications they are more likely to get a good job, earn a decent wage and, the carrot on the stick, travel the world when they retire. Given our current rate of warming by the time my Year 7s are trying to draw a pension in 2081 the planet may be 4oC warmer and trying to find food to survive may be higher on their list than finding a country to visit that isn’t utterly ravaged by the consequences of climate breakdown. By omitting crucial information from the curriculum, young people are being misled without explicitly lying. Although obfuscating the truth might protect their feelings it is important to prepare them as best as possible. DfE has a lot to deliver in a short space of time and are currently ‘working towards’ at best. Scrutiny isn’t all one sided.
Deception
During the infamous Brexit campaign the Leave Campaign’s assertion that the UK would save £350 million a week by leaving the EU, which could then be redirected to the NHS was pure fantasy as it didn’t account for the money the UK received back from the EU. Farage’s controversial advertising campaign featuring images of queues of immigrants lining up to get into England was launched at the start of his campaign in 2016. The poster, titled ‘Breaking Point’, depicted a stream of migrants and was widely criticised for being inflammatory and racist. The image used was actually one of Syrian refugees near the Croatia-Slovenia border.
I’m not even going to start on the use of AI images. Some gullible folk will actually believe a picture of Musk blessing the sick or poor is true. The old saying ‘believe nothing of what you hear, and only half of what you see’ is now massively optimistic.
Pathological Lies
Both sociopaths and psychopaths are known to lie frequently due to their lack of empathy, disregard for others, desire to manipulate and control situations to their advantage or simply because they find it entertaining. Their lies can be convincing because they often lack the emotional responses that might give away deceit. They’re all for personal gain and sod the lowly peasants.
While some psychologists suggest that Trump exhibits traits consistent with pathological lying, apparently it’s not an official medical diagnosis. Some experts describe him as a master manipulator who uses falsehoods or blatant dishonesty strategically to achieve his goals. Truth Social users are able to make posts or ‘Truths’ and share other users’ ‘ReTruths’. Yet, as a recent survey by the Pew Research Center revealed, approximately 62% of data on the internet is unreliable. We’re all playing a game of charades.
The report also indicates 45% of UK adults come across a fake news item daily. Many social media platforms and news outlets, owned by billionaires, seem to delight in spreading fake news as it exacerbates inequality, delays climate action and gives them something to chortle about over a sumptuous dinner in a room decorated in gold. Last week Musk urged his followers not to donate to Wikipedia until ‘they restore balance to their editing authority’ as 29% of its budget has been spent on ‘equity, safety & inclusion’. Who on Earth wants those? All my class’s hands shoot up, blessed are the meek.
Whoppers
During the US election campaign I saw a MAGA-hatted Trump supporter being interviewed while queuing up for a rally. She believed that Hurricane Ian which ravaged South Carolina was being caused by humans deliberately as she had read about it online. The interviewer asked why anyone would cause such damage, ‘to get the uranium for batteries’ the women replied. ‘Do you mean lithium?’ prompted the interviewer. I’m not saying she was unintelligent; she was just ripe for the picking. As the number of climate-change induced disasters increases on social media I’ve seen everything blamed on dam installation, dam deconstruction, cloud seeding, contrails and more.
I prefer fact to fiction. Scientific evidence and data on climate change are the result of rigorous research and analysis conducted by experts worldwide. Across countless studies climate scientists have used advanced technology, long-term observations, and peer-reviewed studies to gather and interpret data on temperature changes, greenhouse gas concentrations, and other environmental indicators. Now our weather is becoming so unpredictable that forecasters are often blamed for either underestimating or overestimating the likely damage caused by a storm. People then love to say ‘crying wolf’ as it helps them to feel they have the upper hand.
Meanwhile, against the rising tide of mistruths the Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, has stated that online safety in schools will be taught on how to spot extremist content and misinformation. She aims to embed critical thinking across multiple subjects and arm children against ‘putrid conspiracy theories’. A metaphor of our times could be that she is up shit creek without a paddle as the situation feels hopeless.
Honesty
Our neighbours have chickens and used to put out an Honesty box along with their eggs at the end of their drive to collect payment. The box was stolen three times before they gave in. By nature humans want to trust each other but it seems the lessons we learn make us more weary as the years tick by.
Lucky for me Hubster tends to be brutally honest, avoiding lying even when he possibly should (yes, your bum does look big in that). Needless to say, he’s on the autistic spectrum. Honesty is one of the reasons I enjoy working with children with ADHD or Autism. They tend to tell the truth and call out untruths. Just one of the many reasons to celebrate neurodiversity!
In addition to destabilising socio-political, economic and environmental systems we have a broken legal system where climate activists are locked up for actually telling the truth about climate breakdown. Our house of cards is becoming increasingly unstable. It’s a pandemic of cognitive dissonance. Even when we accept climate change is real, we often tell ourselves ‘yes, the situation is serious but I’ll still be able to enjoy an excessive lifestyle with oodles of new stuff’. To be frank, I’m not sure many humans can cope with the science of what the future holds. Obviously scientists can’t be 100% sure until adequate evidence is collected but typically models demonstrate that civilisation could collapse.It’s just a question of how and when, rather than if.
Maybe there are two paths to follow; salvation where we are honest with ourselves and each other or damnation where we continue to lie. Imagine if, for a New Year’s Resolution everyone started to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. The world wouldn’t stop turning but capitalism, and the environmental damage it causes, might grind to a halt in an act of mutual self preservation.
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