The cost of lies: radical honesty has never been more urgent
Oct 9, 2023
“Every lie owes a debt to the truth, sooner or later that debt is paid.” – Soviet nuclear engineer Valery Alekseevich Legasov on the consequences of deceit and denial.
The rise and fall of empires have often been dramatic, marked by key events that shape their destinies. The disastrous expedition of the Spanish Armada in 1588 serves as a prime example. Emboldened by a sense of divine right and military superiority, Spain’s invincible fleet met a humiliating defeat at the hands of England. Fast forward to the 21st century, and we find the U.S. Pacific Command and Western navies grappling with strategic challenges in an increasingly multipolar world preoccupied by the possibility of using similar means for similar ends as did the Holy Roman Empire.
But what underpins these colossal errors of judgment? The answer lies in the tension between truth and power.
“What is the cost of lies? It’s not that we’ll mistake them for the truth. The real danger is that if we hear enough lies, then we no longer recognise the truth at all.” Legasov’s profound declaration is not merely a philosophical musing; it is the cautionary note for our times, as applicable to the complacent elites of our western corporate autarky as it was to the old men who manned the decaying bureaucracy of the socialist soviets.
As a secular and scientific child of the enlightenment born into the atomic age, I discerned one good golden thread running through the epochs. Only the truth can set you free. The divergence from this principle has far-reaching consequences. It leads to a cascade of errors, each compounding the last, culminating in an edifice of arrogance and, ultimately, hubris. Take, for example, the misinformation campaigns that have plagued recent political events, sowing division and undermining democratic institutions. These are not isolated incidents but symptoms of a deeper malaise.
The divergence from the truth is not merely a moral failing; it’s a strategic one. There exists an inverse relationship between reform, renewal, and radical honesty on one hand, and complacency, decay, and lies on the other. Empires like the Roman Republic transitioned into autocracy when they traded the virtues of civic duty and open debate for the vices of corruption and demagoguery. When empires commit to the virtues of reform and honesty, they adapt and thrive. When they indulge in the vices of complacency and deceit, they stagnate and decline.
Dissent is not just an act of rebellion; it’s a necessity for radical rethinking. In a world increasingly mired in echo chambers and filter bubbles, the ability to question and challenge prevailing narratives becomes paramount. Dissent serves as a form of ‘intellectual honesty’ that can counterbalance the inertia of hubris. To stifle dissent is to silence the very voices that could prevent a slide into arrogance and decay. Consider the whistleblowers and activists who have risked everything to speak truth to power; they embody the essence of constructive dissent.
After 500 years of exploration and conquest, the time has come for Anglo-Saxon civilisation to face a new global dynamic and accept that the helm of the planet is shifting eastward, towards multipolarity, with emerging powers challenging the status quo. Clinging to our old paradigms of exceptionalism and unilateralism is no longer viable. A radical rethink is not just an option; it is a necessity. This entails not just policy adjustments but a deep introspection into the values and principles that have guided us thus far.
In summary, the tension between truth and power has driven the rise and fall of empires throughout history. As we stand at a critical juncture, facing a shifting global landscape, the need for radical honesty and independent thinking has never been more urgent. These are not only moral imperatives but strategic necessities. We ignore them at our peril. The challenges ahead are manifold, but the path forward is clear. Only by embracing reform, nurturing informed and loyal dissent, and upholding the value of truth can we hope to navigate the complexities of a new epoch.
In the absence of the irritant of scholarship and reflection, without a reconciliation with the other members of the human family, without a new appreciation of our founding virtues we will retreat into the past, not face the shock of the new.
“Every lie owes a debt to the truth, sooner or later that debt is paid.”
- Soviet nuclear engineer Valery Alekseevich Legasov on the consequences of deceit and denial.
Kari McKern, who lives in Sydney, is a retired career public servant and librarian and IT specialist. She has maintained a life time interest in Asian affairs and had visited Asia often, and writes here in a private capacity.
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