Why Do We Lie?

↓ More info and sources below ↓

Everyone lies. Even you and even me. We lie about small things and we lie about big things. We lie to help ourselves and we lie to protect others. Powerful people lie, all the way down to little kids telling fibs. Why do we do this if we’re supposed to be the most socially developed species on Earth? Why can’t we tell the truth? Are we doomed to lie? Well, maybe. Here’s why.

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[besmart]

What did you lie about today?
Find me on Instagram and Twitter and let me know what you thought of the video! @okaytobesmart @DrJoeHanson

[wolver]

The people who said the papers would be shredded lied.

[sddfg]

"Yes yes, I read and accept the terms of service", clicks AGREE.

[hoodio]

we lie actually BECAUSE we're so socially advanced, we can predict how people react to what we say so we adjust what we say to get an answer we prefer

[suntzu]

“If one always tells the truth, they are most definitely not a human, ”
-Sun Tzu

[vivaansood]

No one knows when we started to lie because we probably lied about that

[orionx]

Kids learn to lie really quickly when they have abusive parents. They learn there's consequences to telling the truth

[thisdoesnotexist]

I thought the title said “why do we live” and I was like damn, they’re asking the serious questions

[ytblqol]

You forgot about the direct instruction we had as children to lie. Our parents or teachers told us to apologize for something when we weren't sorry. We said a blatant truth that was insulting, and were told "you don't say that".

[thegalvean]

He lied.

He said “Hey smart people”, but I’m not smart

[ofyarnandhooks]

"ARE YOU CALLING ME A LIAR?"
"I AIN'T CALLING YOU A TRUTHER"

[fearfulfox]

I'm very surprised that he didn't talk about lying as protection, as a trauma survivor I had and still compulsively lie as a defense mechanism to keep my abusers from hurting me

[noamasaraf]

"I'm not lying, I'm bending the truth"

[annonimooseq]

“Lies are the glue that hold society together” -Dr. Doofenshmirtz

[SodaWithoutSparkles]

The most frequent lie: I have read the terms and conditions

[IWasAYo-Yo]

As a person with Asperger's, I have difficulty with lying to people. Like I understand that it's for survival and making situations not awkward, which I guess is fine as long as it's not going to hurt someone. But if the lie is going to hurt someone more than telling them the truth, then you should just tell the truth. No matter how awkward it becomes.

[_.talketh._]

Simple answer:
We lie because the brain that we have wants to terminate the feeling of being Yelled at or something, so we lie in order to get rid of any terrible consequence that could happen.

[mhyzon]

“My dear doctor, they’re all true.”
“Even the lies?”
“Especially the lies.”

[S_Hyde]

"Hey smart people!"
-Never have I felt so excluded

[UmVtCg]

The question asked upon meeting a acquaintance "How are you?" Is just a common courtesy, nobody wants to hear a sobbing story. The answer "good" is almost always expected.