
By Marilú Acosta
I would love to say that we lie because we are creative, because we imagine a funnier world, because we have the impulse to set up plausible situations, because today's lie is tomorrow's achieved goal, because we are artists who paint illusions, because we tell mysterious stories, because by lying we make the world fairer or because by lying we go to a paradisiacal place where we rest and have a good time. In short, I would love to say that we lie because it is nicer. Yes, I would love to lie to you, but I don't dare to do so. In reality, young and old, we lie to avoid punishment. We lie to protect ourselves or someone we love, even we don't need to love so much to seek to avoid harm. We lie to maintain privacy, to avoid embarrassment, to be nice, to be politically correct, to please someone, or simply to belong.