Conjugate “to Lie”

Editor@TheIndependentDaily.com

Maybe Israel’s PM Netanyahu is right: The allegedly formalized practice of Taqiyya is a bit unnerving: It’s hard to tell when someone is confessing a truth rather than fabricating a reality. And owing to quite a few years of experience, both as a liar and in dealing with liars, he has deduced that Iran is blowing smoke up our collective Wazoo regarding nuclear arms development. Is there a chance that he’s right?

If I were to lead a fundamentalist group of Islamists I certainly wouldn’t keep grabbing the bull by the horns having seen the consequences of such blatant confrontation in Iraq, Afghanistan, Mali and Nigeria, and (potentially) in Syria. Particularly so if I were trying to peacefully go about clandestinely developing a nuclear arsenal.

The preferred method would be to keep a low profile - to not rock the boat, make waves, stir the pot, throw more wood on the fire...

Not many of our domestic radical groups hang a sign out in front of the compound that says, “Making Bombs Here. Please Do Not Disturb.” That wouldn’t be considered very keen of thought.

So while Muslims supposedly have a formalized practice - Taqiyya - by which they manipulate how they may be viewed, through prevarication, we - our government and our citizens - have the age-old art of lying. We tell big and small lies all the time. Same thing. It’s just that the word, “Lying” is so fundamentally over-used and  the act so pervasive that it’s lost its sting. Also, even in the gerund it’s too monosyllabic lacking poetic resonance.

So, since our language is steeped in Latin, perhaps we ought to embrace the practice of, Mentirine, which in translation is, to tell a lie. Such as, “The US Government’s practice of Mentirine permitted it to spy on its unwitting citizens for years before Edward Snowden intentionally spilled the beans...”

Still, it’s tough to build a better world if we refuse to accept people at their word, notwithstanding how frequently we - all of us - may practice Mentirine. There are few powers in the World today, especially including Israel whose further expansion into Palestinian territory has resulted in the displacement, incarceration, starvation, and near-genocidal extermination of an entire people, who may hold themselves up as pure examples of truth and righteousness.

So I suppose, notwithstanding Netanyahu’s preoccupation with Iran, we ought to embrace Iran’s call to reconciliation and move forward as though all is right with the World. Should it prove otherwise, we can take some solace in knowing that we’ll all end up in the same place if they are not: Dead.