Liars Are Gonna Lie - Especially Donald J. Trump

There are several sorts of Liars.

First is the Unconscious Liar. This is the person who unconsciously lies, either to spare themselves embarrassment or loss of pride on some little inconsequential bit of information or the other, or the person who tells small lies in order to spare someone else's feelings. These kinds of liars are sometimes unaware that their untruthfulness even comes out of their mouths. When they know, they usually feel somewhat guilty about it. Most everyone at one time or another either is or has been this sort of liar, where a small deception 'helps' rather than 'hurts'. I think we learn this mostly harmless trait in early childhood.

There is the Swindle Liar. This is the person who is deliberately trying to con or trick someone else out of something, usually money or something of value. These people will literally tell you anything to gain their way. Many used car salespeople and other high-pressure salespeople are this kind of liar. They usually think nothing or lying to their wives or husbands about their illicit affairs either. A Swindle Liar often schemes and constructs elaborate scenarios and 'facts' to 'validate' the lies they tell others.

There is the Narcissistic Liar. This is the person who lies to others in order to elevate or validate themselves to others. The pitiable part about Narcissistic Liars is they convince themselves to the point they literally believe their own lies. They almost never admit to 'alternative facts' even in the face of overpowering contrary information.

When I was in high school, a classmate was an extreme example of this kind of liar. He was absolutely compelled to tell lies to varnish his name. (Does this strongly remind you of anyone?) Actually, it was his notoriety, since everyone knew he was so full of BS about himself. Whenever he launched into some long, convoluted tale about his personal heroism, or other fatuous claims, the listener would sarcastically say, 'Yes, Jim' (Jim was not his real name). I remember at graduation when the principal called out names to receive diplomas, he called 'Jim Xxxx, the author of all those 'Yes Jim' stories.' Those in the audience tittered since it was a very small town and everyone knew about Jim.  Our current president reminds me so very, very much of Jim Xxxx!

Donald J. Trump has been described as a 'malignant narcissist'.  (Look it up - you will be appalled at how well this term fits the man and the other traits associated with this diagnosis!)

There is also the Habitual Liar. This is the person who lies so much it does not matter to them whether they tell the truth, or tell an outright and demonstrably, proven lie. The truth simply does not register with these people. Their 'truth' is only the lies they tell. When caught in a lie it does not bother them in the slightest. They just simply shrug it off with a duplicitous smile, often accompanied by a small joke. Their attitude seems to be, "well, everybody does it, so that's why I do."  Perversely, Habitual Liars often lie when the truth would actually serve them better. They seem constrained to lie as much as possible. The only time they tell the truth is when they are compelled to under penalty of law or other serious costs to themselves. Even then, they will attempt to hide the truth as much as possible.

I am firmly and personally convinced our current president, namely Donald John Trump, is all of the above, except possibly, probably the Unconscious Liar. There does not seem to be a kind, caring or sensitive molecule in this person's being. He is totally tone death to all but himself.

Of course, I am not the only one who believes this. Columnist Bill Moyers seems to hold a similar opinion:

http://billmoyers.com/story/donald-trump-and-the-walter-winchell-effect/

What mystifies me, however, is why Mr. Trump has so many 'followers' who believe everything coming out of his mouth, or in his tweets. Mr. Moyers has thoughts on that too. To that, I would add, that Trump's followers believe what they want to believe. It is a corollary to his claim that he "could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue in New York, and shoot someone and not lose a single vote!" I believe on that point Mr. Trump tells the absolute, unbridled truth. No matter the sordid fact about Trump that is uncovered and validated, his followers simply ignore it. He has convinced them it is 'Fake News', and they will argue you into the ground in the face of proven fact! Like Trump, the facts simply do not register with them either. It is also proof of the claim that if you tell a lie often enough, plenty of people will end up believing it.

What bothers me though, is that our news media do not consistently call him or his spokespersons out on outright lies. They often allow them to simply ignore a question or answer another, a sometimes completely unrelated question to help the liar to obfuscate the truth. 

Pulitzer prize-winning 'Politifact' has published some interesting charts on Trump's 'truthfulness'. You will note that 84% of what Donald Trump says qualifies as either an outright lie ('Pants-On-Fire'), mostly false, or only half-true.  I consider this to utterly unacceptable in any leader of any advanced nation, let alone the United States of America.

Screenshots of Politico's charts appear below:

An Open Christmas Letter to President Donald J. Trump

An Open Christmas Letter to President Donald J. Trump

December 25, 2017

To:  President Donald J. Trump

C/o, The White House

In an Upside-down, Alternative Universe

Dear Donald -

May I call you Donald? 

I deduce already that you must inevitably receive millions, nay perhaps even billions, of irate, hateful and disrespectful letters, tweets, emails and other unpleasant messages each and every day, including, maybe especially, on the weekends. Even if those messages are so very richly deserved, and in the flavor of the holiday season, I want to be the one to choose today to write a letter of thanks to you.

So, how are you doing anyway? I'm guessing you're having a stressful time right now what with all the craziness associated with your presidency. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I don't think that part will change very much for you in the near future, at least not for the better. So, I wanted to get this letter to you while there is yet time.

I realize even though you are a ‘Christian of Political Convenience’, Christmas is the ‘reason for the season’ as Christians are so fond of incessantly and insistently pointing out. So, in the spirit of our traditional holiday season of 'good will' - even if there does not seem to be much goodwill going around these days - I'm now writing this letter of thanks to you.

Let me say up front, that I know you cannot help being the person you are. Like everyone else, you are merely a product of your DNA,  your heritage, and your life experiences heretofore. Because I know that, and pity you, I will now lay all my own rude criticisms completely aside. There are plenty of others already pointing out your many faults, ad infinitum, and with no need of input from me. Today others may do all the railing against your malignant personality as they wish, but I will not.

Therefore mine is a simple message of thanks. I decided I have to be thankful for you being the person you are, deep down. After all, I don't have to like you to be thankful for you, do I? Here are my reasons for thanks:

First, you have exposed for all the world to see, and as no person has ever done so completely before, the deep, ugly and pervasive currents of hate, racism, and misogyny running through about 30% of our country's population, your 'base'. I thank you for defining and exposing that ugliness;

Secondly, you have single-handedly shown a bright spotlight on the malignant hypocrisy running through such a large percentage of the so-called 'evangelical' movement. Not all mind you, for there are still some left who are truly 'Christian in Deed' too, but they sure seem to be in the minority when it comes to politics. We can now fully appreciate the emptiness of the primary evangelical 'message', and the hollowness of their 'faith'. We can see their readiness, even eagerness to overlook so many heinously unchristian characteristics in a person so long as they might agree with certain narrow-minded notions they hold. This I have always strongly felt, but never before seen so richly proven as by you. Never before have the scales so dropped from my eyes as now, and I thank you for that;

Thirdly, the results of your words and deeds since being sworn into office have completely validated and identified for the nation and the world, who today's Republican Party actually is. Sadly, the Party of Lincoln has conspicuously proven to be now completely and totally dead. Not one single vestige of it is left, and only the post-mortem and burial remain. Yes, the GOP still breathes as a political entity in name, but it assuredly is no longer the Party of Lincoln. I thank you for so richly proving that.

Next, I wish to thank you for bringing the poisonous vipers of white racism and nationalism, and the sick perversion of the so-called 'militias' and other right-wing crazies, out of their rat warrens, gutters, trailer parks and even in mansions for all the world to see. We always knew they lurked there in certain dark places, but had no real idea who they actually were, or how many they are. Now we have a much clearer picture and how huge a threat they are to the nation and the world. Knowing this, we can now work in earnest to heal this threat. I thank you for being the root cause and catalyst for bringing so many of these vermin out into the light of day;

Next, I wish to thank you for bringing all the corporate demi-gods and wealthy oligarchs out of their boardrooms and mansions to support you and your so-called 'tax cuts'. Yes, there are sure plenty of tax cuts for the already wealthy, but all at the expense of public debt, public health, education, and eventually, to everyone not already wealthy, not to mention our children and grandchildren. What kind of con game is that anyway, where everyone is promised a tax cut, but only the already rich get to keep theirs? I suppose this only proves the real 'Golden Rule': "Them that has the gold, rule".  We knew this already, but never has it been so solidly and soundly proven before. I thank you for proving that;

Next, I wish to thank you for exposing the threat of treasonous Americans who worked so assiduously with Russians and others to undermine our democracy, and now even threaten the survival of our very nation. This is a clear, alarming and very present danger no one in the general public had even suspected. We now realize some - too many - Americans we admired and respected, were actually traitors to the nation which nurtured, supported and blessed them with opportunities. We know that in the name of greed, they sold out their souls and the nation which made their success possible in the first place. Had it not been for the example you yourself set, we might never have known this. I thank you for that.

Next, I wish to thank you for clarifying for everyone to see, how little our national institutions and laws are prepared for dealing with idiocy and depravity in the Oval Office. I mean no personal disrespect in saying this, and merely want to point out a fact of life. It is a fact and had not you, or another person of your type and caliber not somehow gained the office of the most powerful person in the land, we might have continued going our merry way in ignorance of that danger. Now that we know, perhaps we can now do something to ameliorate and block such a circumstance in the future. I sincerely do hope so, and if we don't, then it is our fault, not yours! The Founding Fathers certainly never imagined such a thing, and If not for you, we might never have realized the danger. I thank you for that.

I could go on, but there is a limit for anything - which I cling to as hope for the future. When I told my wife I planned to write a letter of thanks to you, she got angry with me. Poor thing, she absolutely hates you, with a passion I never imagined for her. If she had her way, she would have you drawn and quartered tomorrow if not sooner, and tells me almost every day "I hope that bastard Donald Trump dies today!"

But not me. I confess I don't hate you per se, just the result of your 'being' as it were, and I certainly do hope to see your time in the Oval Office cut short, but not through death. I want you to live a long, long time. I want you to be around to witness the damage and destruction your time of idiocy and depravity in the Oval Office has wreaked on our nation. I want you to be around for a long, long time to witness your name and reputation dragged through the mud by at least one future generation and feel the shame that is being and will be heaped onto your name forevermore. I am surely glad I am not you.

And, I will always be very, very thankful for that!

Sincerely

Erik

Citizen of The United States