Mickey Z

Cool Observer

Sunday, June 05, 2005

The smell of mendacity is thick in here

Bush the Elder once told us: “I will never apologize for the United States of America. I don’t care what the facts are.”

However, such disdain for facts requires resourcefulness. Just ask Maggie Thatcher: “You don’t tell deliberate lies, but sometimes you have to be evasive.”

“It’s not a matter of what is true that counts,” added Henry Kissinger, “but a matter of what is perceived to be true.”

Cue Alexander Haig: “That’s not a lie; it’s a terminological inexactitude. Also, a tactical misrepresentation.”

“If I know the answer I’ll tell you the answer,” Ronald Dumsfeld sums up, “and if I don’t, I’ll just respond, cleverly.”

But I’ll give the last word to Mark Twain: