That politicians and bureaucrats lie — or mislead or tell mistruths, if you prefer — should shock no one.
A few years ago, the son of a mayoral candidate — for the sake of discussion, let’s presume his name was Fred White — was arrested. We “knew” it was his son but needed to confirm.
As I recall, he didn’t have a phone, so I went to his apartment to confirm it was him. It seemed like it would be a simple task, but that’s usually when everything goes pear-shaped.
I knocked on the door and asked if it was the same person. He and his son looked at me, and they told me no. I showed them the police report — complete with the address of the person arrested — but they denied it.
They closed the door, and I called my editor to relay the story. Dumbfounded, I knocked again. Perhaps I didn’t believe what I was just told.
I said, “Are you sure this isn’t you?”
Nope, it was someone else, they insisted. The mayoral candidate actually told me, “There’s a lot of Fred Whites in this town.” I repeated it back to him to make sure I heard him correctly. He confirmed the quote.
I quoted him in the newspaper, and the publication used it as a pull-out quote!
I returned to the office and tried to explain to my editors, who were as confounded as I was and found such a denial hard to fathom. So, I called the police detective, told him the story and asked him to confirm, which he did.
Perhaps it was a lesson in what is today obvious.
Sometimes, despite the preponderance of evidence, politicians and bureaucrats — or those who want power — will say whatever they think is most expedient at the moment.
Vagueness helps bureaucrats because they can’t be pinned to a particular statement. It also allows them to adjust their perspective later and lodge a complaint.
There should be one set of facts, and the truth should be the truth. Why is it often so challenging to ascertain an answer to a simple question?
Despite what some pundits might say, this is not a new phenomenon. People often don’t want to answer a question because they don’t want to be held accountable.
They like the benefits of power but don’t like the responsibilities that come with it. In other words, they want people to see them as leaders but don’t want to lead.
They know they can run out the clock, and everyone’s attention will turn to another issue of the day. When it does, the process starts again.