Today's quote comes from Winston Churchill (1874-1965), who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 and again from 1951 to 1955. A prolific writer, artist, and historian, he won the Nobel Price in Literature and was made an honorary citizen of the United States.
"A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to put its pants on." - Winston Churchill
What I feel Churchill was trying to say is that lies spread like wildfire, and even if the truth later surfaces, it isn't easy to undo the damage at that point.
It reminds me of kids I went to school with who would spread rumors about their peers that were later discovered to be flat-out lies. Whether it was that one kid slept with another or that someone cheated on an exam, they had no basis in reality and often were started to undermine the target for a specific reason (they disliked or envied the person, etc.).
We've also seen this play out in the media with politicians, celebrities, and the like. Take Bill Cosby and all the women who have suddenly come out of the woodwork to allege that he abused them. We don't know which of those women, if any, is telling the truth, but we can rest assured that Cosby's career has been tarnished indefinitely by the scandal.
Even though one is innocent until proven guilty, lies hold a lot more power than most of us care to admit. If someone lies about you, and it's believable enough, that could cost you your job, wreck your relationship or marriage, or cause other forms of permanent damage. As much as you try to contain the damage, once the word is out, it could have serious repercussions.
It's much easier to spread a lie or rumor than it is to undo one, that's for certain.
What do you take from Churchill's quote,
"A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to put its pants on." - Winston Churchill
What I feel Churchill was trying to say is that lies spread like wildfire, and even if the truth later surfaces, it isn't easy to undo the damage at that point.
It reminds me of kids I went to school with who would spread rumors about their peers that were later discovered to be flat-out lies. Whether it was that one kid slept with another or that someone cheated on an exam, they had no basis in reality and often were started to undermine the target for a specific reason (they disliked or envied the person, etc.).
We've also seen this play out in the media with politicians, celebrities, and the like. Take Bill Cosby and all the women who have suddenly come out of the woodwork to allege that he abused them. We don't know which of those women, if any, is telling the truth, but we can rest assured that Cosby's career has been tarnished indefinitely by the scandal.
Even though one is innocent until proven guilty, lies hold a lot more power than most of us care to admit. If someone lies about you, and it's believable enough, that could cost you your job, wreck your relationship or marriage, or cause other forms of permanent damage. As much as you try to contain the damage, once the word is out, it could have serious repercussions.
It's much easier to spread a lie or rumor than it is to undo one, that's for certain.
What do you take from Churchill's quote,
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