Little white lies, fibs, half-truths, fudging the facts, spin — we’re exposed to these variations on a theme many times a day. If a politician “spins” facts, we barely notice. The lie has become the currency of not just the political class, but of the sciences, religion, philosophy, sociology, and pop culture. We easily recognize the lie as soon as its work is done — when that ancient serpent sinks its fangs into our skin.
Is it morally acceptable to lie in order to spare someone hurt feelings or some perceived harm? Most would likely sanction the “white lie.” But, in our pursuit of “tolerance,” how far have we wandered from principles of moral excellence? Americans used to revere George Washington’s “I cannot tell a lie,” but most young Americans have never heard the story of our virtuous founding father.
Truth telling, or the lack thereof, personally and nationally is the subject of New York Times best selling author Andy Andrews’ book How Do You Kill 11 Million People. This book has received high praise, cited by Ted Nugent as a “book that everybody should read,” during a recent The Professional Noticer podcast.
Andy spoke to Townhall about his book, which was recently rereleased in an extended version, saying, “We have a leadership vacuum. We don’t have a vacuum of people who want to lead..[but of] people who know what true leadership is. And, true leadership is influence and the essence of influence is agreement, not disagreement. So we have to find something that we agree on.”
The current political and social environment is hyper-polarized, which are the effects of class, race, and social warfare practiced by the left for decades. Americans are finding fewer and fewer things to agree on as we are driven into separate tribes classified by skin color, economic status, or the fiction of sexual orientation. All of this is celebrated by democrats who are now actively corralling people into intellectual ghettoes. For example, If you won’t participate in the cult of infanticide, you’re bullied and marginalized by loud-mouthed, mostly white college aged females. The irony is cloying — especially when considering how democrats are now perfectly lucid about the definition of “woman.”
But, to Andrew’s point, we need to find common ground on truth-telling and hold our elected representatives to that standard. The consequences of playing fast and loose with lying can be deadly, even genocidal.
Andy explains in How Do You Kill 11 Million People how small things lead to big things — consequences so vast that they’re truly beyond comprehension. He uses a vivid example of how small lies can be woven into a diabolical tapestry that blinds its victims until escape is impossible. It staggers the mind how a relatively small minority of Nazi party members were able to subdue the population of an entire country and successfully conduct a campaign of genocide on 11 million jews. But as Andy explains, it begins with a false narrative.
Over the entry gate to Auschwitz a slogan was posted which read, “Arbeit macht frei,” or “Work makes one free.” The slogan was first posted by Theodor Eicke at Dachau and later by Rudolf Hoss at Auschwitz. That phrase symbolizes how a lie can be used to effectively commit genocide. In the beginning, the Jews were told that being herded into ghettos was for their own good. They were placed inside razor wire and told that such austere measures were necessary to protect them from extremists who wished to harm them. Sound familiar? Jewish husbands were told that their wives and children were to be transported to safe locations and, believing the lie, helped herd their families into waiting cattle cars, believing the narrative until they heard the heavy chains and padlocks tolling the death-knell of their loved ones.
Our elitist intelligentsia, who populate our institutions of higher learning, are perplexed about the meaning and nature of truth, opining endlessly about its subjective nature and casting doubt as to the possibility of meaning. However, there seems to be universal agreement about the antipode of truth.
When was the last time you were lied to? Was it someone close to you? Or, was it a stranger who took advantage of a weakness or an inequity? We all know the sting of the lie and we remember the event vividly and as viscerally as receiving a physical wound — unambiguous and objective.
If we know the lie so well, how is it that the truth is such a mystery. The simple answer — those who covet power want you ignorant, pliable, and stupefied as to meaning and truth. If the lie is practically tactile, then isn’t it logical to assume that truth is just as real, concrete, and knowable? But, people bewildered by the vicissitudes of life are easy to herd and ripe for domination. If a politician preaches the ineffable nature of truth, be sure he or she is scheming to make a slave out of you.
In his book, Mr. Andrews refers to a quote from Adolph Hitler who once told his inner circle, “How fortunate for leaders that men do not think.” Lies, especially big ones are gobbled up by the masses and in the hands of a megalomaniacal tyrant, easily lead the foolish masses to their doom. Mr. Andrews told Townhall that the greatest advice he's ever gotten came from an old man almost forty years ago, “you can’t believe everything you think.”
Understanding the power of critical and independent thinking is the surest way to ensure that Americans remain free citizens. Though our universities have long since abandoned education for indoctrination, we can fight the armies of ignorance by seeking to educate ourselves. Dr. Jordan Peterson often says “if you can write well, you can think well, and that makes you a force to be reckoned with.” Read, write, think repeat.
Eleven million people were led to their deaths in concentration camps scattered throughout Nazi Germany — exterminated by a political elite which systematically implemented deception. Andy’s book is critical to our time — we excuse poor character in our leaders to our peril. How Do You Kill Eleven Million People is full of practical wisdom and contains crucial answers to questions that confront us today.