Well I'm reading the 13 1/2 lives of Captain Bluebear again. And in this fantabulous novel, there is a bear that is blue that goes on all sorts of crazy adventures, and I quote: "What about the Minipirates? What about the Hobgoblins, the Spiderwitch, the Babbling Billows, the Troglotroll, the Mountain Maggot? What about the Alpine Imp, the headless Bollogg, the Bolloggless head, the nomadic Muggs, the Captive Mirage, the Yetis and Bluddums, the Eternal Tornado, the Rickshaw Demons?". He also has a run-in with a carnivorous island, a giant pool of earwax, and a mustached dwarf. As you can imagine, this book is a bit kaleidoscopic. Also, Bluebear teaches the reader some life lessons, such as why not to venture through a Bollogg's head and to never, ever, trust a Troglotroll. One of these life lessons I found, which I don't think was intended to be a life lesson at all, was as follows: "They taught me that a good white lie is often considerably more exciting than the truth. Telling one is like dressing up reality in its Sunday best." This was just about all he included on the topic except for another twenty or so pages devoted to a duel of lies.
Now I don't completely go along with this theory, as if you lied about everything then nobody would have any idea what was going on in the world - it'd be social anarchy. People would constantly be mucking about, trying to figure out what was actually going on in the world, what their boss wanted them to do, if their friend could hang out. Nothing would be concrete. Even if somebody said "I'm not lying", that could be a lie. Or it could be the truth, but if it was the truth that they were lying then they're still lying. But I do believe that there shouldn't be so much hubbub about telling a small lie. As long as you don't pull a Ferris Bueller and tell all the ridiculously gullible people you know that you need a new kidney, you'll be fine. Besides, the truth can be hard to handle, unwanted, or better for people not to know. It all depends on the situation. Eating Oreos before dinner? Excuse: the dog got into the pantry. National Security? Well, that complicates matters, as some people believe that everyone should know the truth about our country's secret goings-on, while others believe that some things should be shielded from the general public. Some things are better not to know, as bad things just cause problems. I suppose I'm just rattling on now. Goodnight, dear reader. The few of you.
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