General Principle. For decades I have said that any statement made by the Federal government, elected official, or a high-level bureaucrat, must be received subject to a rebuttable presumption that the statement is false. Over those decades, the government has consistently achieved ever greater mendacity milestones. It has passed into a state of reflexive, habitual, unwavering dishonesty.
I believe nothing that the government says. My working assumption always is that no matter the statement, the opposite is far more likely to be true. When the government does say something that is true, it is almost certain to be a random occurrence, a mistake, a matter of utter insignificance, or a truth told in service of a greater lie.
Covid. The Covid-19 virus was cause for genuine concern initially and for a very brief period thereafter. Immediately politicized, the scamdemic rapidly became a fertile manure pile for the cultivation of falsehoods. A pandemic of the unvaccinated. Vaccines stop spread of the virus. Face masks stop spread of the virus. Six feet of space between individuals stop spread of the virus. Masks must be worn outdoors and when alone in an automobile. Healthy children are at risk. Manipulated statistics. Concealed conflicts of interest. Suppression of legitimate medical and scientific inquiry and dissent. Sworn lies, unsworn lies, big lies, little lies. Intentional ignorance. Loss of memory concerning recent statements or events. Fatal policies adopted, executed, and denied. Funding of gain-of-function research denied. Lies to cover up lies told to cover up other lies.
Illegal Immigration. The porosity of the border between Mexico and the US is another prolific source for the manufacture of falsehoods. The border is secure. We have functional control of the border. We have operational control of the border. We are devoting all available resources to border issues. The habitual lying about the Southern border is particularly stunning given its patency. There is no handy “scientific” mumbo jumbo with which to obfuscate the obvious.
Ukraine. The fighting in Ukraine is the most impenetrable and by far the most dangerous lie factory. It is impossible to know the truth about anything concerning Ukraine. The story of the “War in Ukraine” is like a dissertation for an advanced degree from the Bagdad Bob School of Creative Communications. Who are the combatants? Who is committing atrocities? Is it a US/Russia proxy war? Is it a US/Russia hot war? Who blew up the Nord Stream pipeline? How many sides are there? Which side is “winning?” Are five Russians killed for each Ukrainian or is it five Ukrainians for each Russian? Where are tens of billions of dollars really going? How many dollars are flowing back to political actors in the US? Listen to General Jack Keane (Ret.) then listen to Colonel Doug McGregor (Ret.). What is the truth? Which is the valid opinion?
The most dangerous lies relate to the claimed reasons the United States is funding, supporting, cheer-leading and perpetuating the conflict. It cannot be to make Eastern Europe safe for democracy. It might be to satisfy the war lust of the permanent political class that benefits from conflict.
Obviously the objective is to destabilize Russia, grind it down economically and cause regime change by removal of Putin. Perhaps the half-thought-out strategy is that with Russia neutralized, the US has a better chance to defend itself against China. Never mind that the world is closer to the military use of nuclear weapons than at any time since the Cuba missile crisis. Never mind that if pushed hard enough into a small enough corner, Putin is likely to use those weapons.
The most self-destructive move yet by the US against Russia has been to block access by Russia to its own dollar denominated currency reserves held in or through the US banking system. The US announced to the world that can and will, whenever it feels like it, use its status as issuer of the world reserve currency as a weapon of war. Hastening the decline of the US dollar in that critical function is stupid even for the likes of a feeble-minded and never very bright Joe Biden, assuming he participated in the decision.
Cynical and omnipresent dishonesty, real risks to the physical well-being of planet earth (from thermonuclear weapons, not tailpipe emissions), driving adversaries together, and attempting to commit financial and economic suicide really do have the potential to effect regime change – in the United States. Whether it is resignation or removal of a President, destruction of a political party, economic collapse, or collapse of the government itself remains to be seen.