Bitchin Bloggin Bandit: Oh, what a tangled web we weave...When first we practice to deceive!

All lies are a form of deception...right? Nope! I don't buy it! Some lies are justified and even necessary to all of our existence. Just this week I heard myself tell 5 lies.

Does that make me a deceptive person?

Maybe I will be getting one of these for Valentine's Day!

For years we have been told to be truthful and honest but how can you be both without sometimes hurting others? You can't. People can't even handle sarcasm (which is also a form of deception - supposedly) let alone the truth! The bigger question is what do we get out of hurting peeps by being honest? Most of us lie everyday (granted some more than others) but it is hardly to deceive others toward a negative purpose. We often lie to protect others' feelings, our own; because of embarrassment, or lack of some kind of acceptance.

I used to get $1 per tooth!

I love his vest so stylish!

But how does it start? As a child I learned to lie from my parents...they lied to me so much: "Trust me - I know better", "If you eat your vegetables you will grow taller", "If you watch tv too close you will go blind" and of course my fave trio: the tooth fairy, the easter bunny and Santa...need I say more? It didn't take me long to catch on and in turn I lied to get out of trouble or get my way...and it usually worked!

Turns out that lying in children is highly associated with intelligence. Now hear me out parents: A kiddie who recognizes the truth, then chooses to concoct an alternative and then sells it to an adult is using and developing their cognitive and social skills. The truth is just too simple for the above average munchkins! So if your kid stars lying to you...remember that means they are super smart!!!

Just so we are clear I am not in favor of all types of lies so let's break em down:

1) Big Lies - Think along the lines of "Iraq has WMDs" - Not cool

2) Bold-face lie - "I wanted to give you a raise but the final decision is out of my control" - hahah we've all heard that one! A little texture about where this expression came from...it started as "bald-face" lie in the 17th century when those without facial hair (and I guess nothing to hide behind) were deemed the most honest and most likely to get away with a lie. Then it somehow morphed into "bold-face" because of the arrogance and boldness the liar used in their tone. Now you know where that came from - but those are certainly not cool!

3) White Lies: "Yes your new hair cut does look great!" - Totally cool because the alternative can be hurtful - and the bright side is it will grow back eventually!

4) Lying by omission - if you don't ask me don't expect me to volunteer that info! Totally cool - as long as no crime was committed.

5) Pathological lying - def not cool and I don't even get it!

The consequences of lying are that either you get away with it or you don't. As with anything, one must assess if the truth is more painful than the lying. But take heed: lying can be become hard work and quite time consuming, exactly the reason we aren't all cut out to be deceptive.

Nietzsche believed that people told the truth because they were too weak to handle all the lying.

To the contrary of Col. Jessup's comment in "A few good men" some can handle the truth...it's the lying that gets really hairy...