In praise of hypocrisy, 6 of 8

           Curing the Yet-Somehow Disease

          Such is the healing convenience of absolute hypocrisy that merely admitting its existence can ease a troubled mind. Consider this anguished cry:
          “The bill is called the Clear Skies Initiative, and yet it increases air pollution.”
          Consider the mental turmoil expressed by those two words, ‘and yet’. They evoke cognitive dissonance, shock, awe and confusion. The speaker is stunned by the mighty chasm between rhetoric and reality.
          Fear not, O sufferer; relief is at hand. Know that absolute hypocrisy exists; and in the light of that revelation, contemplate this statement:
          “The bill is called the Clear Skies Initiative, and therefore it increases air pollution.”
          From ‘and yet’ to ‘and therefore’; that’s one small verbal step, and one giant mental leap. Clarity replaces confusion; what had made no sense before, now makes perfect sense. Reason is no longer violated by the contradiction; instead it is vindicated. The mind, re-energized, rejects paralysis. Blessed release!

          Consider these cries of pain:

“He promised smaller government, but instead

he made government bigger.”
“His party preaches fiscal responsibility, yet somehow

their budget is unbalanced.”
“He is eager to send others to war, even though

as a youth he dodged the draft.”
“He promised reform, but paradoxically

he appointed corrupt regulators.”
“His foreign policy ironically endangers national security.”
“He preaches liberty even as he works against it.”

Compare them to these bold roars:

 

“He promised smaller government, so of course

he made government bigger.”
“His party preaches fiscal responsibility; and that is why

their budget is unbalanced.”
“He is eager to send others to war, precisely because

as a youth he dodged the draft.”
“He promised reform, so naturally

he appointed corrupt regulators.”
“His foreign policy deliberately endangers national security.”
“He preaches liberty because he works against it.”

          From bondage to liberation, merely by observing hypocrisy. Imagine then the effect of participating in hypocrisy!