Why do people spread misinformation?

Nathan said:
After a bitter divorce in the 90s the EX spread some slanderous statements about me. That prompted me to embrace the notion that:
"A lie left unchallenged becomes the truth".
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I agree with this. However, intelligent people tend to believe the one who simply shakes his head in exasperation whenever the subject comes up while the one who shouts the loudest (particularly in detail) is often the liar.
 

Nathan said:
After a bitter divorce in the 90s the EX spread some slanderous statements about me. That prompted me to embrace the notion that:
"A lie left unchallenged becomes the truth".
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As to the Why (more precisely; motivation) behind that sort of disinformation, I'd say it's ego and resentment, wouldn't you?

I've been there. It wasn't my ex, though, it was someone I considered a good friend, buddy and pal. Bunch of BS that really came out of left-field. I thought it was best to ignore it, but maybe I'm wrong.
 
Murrmurr said:
As to the Why (more precisely; motivation) behind that sort of disinformation, I'd say it's ego and resentment, wouldn't you?
I've been there. It wasn't my ex, though, it was someone I considered a good friend, buddy and pal. Bunch of BS that really came out of left-field. I thought it was best to ignore it, but maybe I'm wrong.
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I think it probably was, It usually is.
 
Tom 86 said:
We now have TV news the tells things as they are supposedly happening. Back in the '50s we only had one half hr news at 6 pm for 1/2 hr. What they had to say had already happened & was researched to be true.
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Yes with 24 hr news shows, they report breaking news then have to backtrack later on inaccurate info. Some of it is understandable, but some of it could have waited until the whole story has been checked out first.

With a few special people, whose main setting is hyper, they'll go off on a rumor. Then it's, grab your gun cause it's goin' down now! No it's not. The wars last a long time and can wait a couple hours sheesh.
 
Judycat said:
Yes with 24 hr news shows, they report breaking news then have to backtrack later on inaccurate info. Some of it is understandable, but some of it could have waited until the whole story has been checked out first.

With a few special people, whose main setting is hyper, they'll go off on a rumor. Then it's, grab your gun cause it's goin' down now! No it's not. The wars last a long time and can wait a couple hours sheesh.
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I'm with you on that one.
 
Murrmurr said:
As to the Why (more precisely; motivation) behind that sort of disinformation, I'd say it's ego and resentment, wouldn't you?

I've been there. It wasn't my ex, though, it was someone I considered a good friend, buddy and pal. Bunch of BS that really came out of left-field. I thought it was best to ignore it, but maybe I'm wrong.
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An adage I once read always stuck with me: ' Take what you need & leave the rest.'
Unfortunately, in some cases there's nothing to take so I try to just move on.
 
MrPants said:
An adage I once read always stuck with me: ' Take what you need & leave the rest.'
Unfortunately, in some cases there's nothing to take so I try to just move on.
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"You can help yourself, but don't take too much ..."

"God Bless the Child" by Blood, Sweat and Tears, although I think Billie Holliday was the original artist.

... or .....

"You take what you need, and you leave the rest"

"The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" by The Band and Joan Baez.
 
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Irwin said:
Here's another casualty of the anti-vaxxers, only this time, a veteran was unable to get treated because the hospital was full of covid-19 patients.

Veteran dies of treatable illness after waiting hours for ICU bed​
Daniel Wilkinson, 46, who served two deployments in Afghanistan, died Sunday of gallstone pancreatitis, a treatable illness, after waiting hours for an ICU bed, KPRC reported.​
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My daughter just survived this medical issue and is still recovering at home now. It causes horrific pain. She spent several hours in a free standing ER while waiting for a room at her hospital which was across town. My point being this situation is not unusual or limited to veterans.

The hospitals are full of Covid patients. Once at the hospital she has emergency surgery. She had a gallstone stuck in a pancreas duct which caused pancreatitis.
 
Murrmurr said:
If it came to it, I'd sacrifice my life to ensure the liberties and rights of my children and grandchildren, especially if it benefited my community as well. But maybe we're talking about 2 different things.
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I get it but what are you are sacrificing, your life and it may not make a difference... that's the sad part. If it made a difference in a positive way... I definitely get it.
 
Ladybj said:
I get it but what are you are sacrificing, your life and it may not make a difference... that's the sad part. If it made a difference in a positive way... I definitely get it.
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If I had to choose to either die, or give up my (and my family's) rights and liberties and live under the control of a completely authoritarian ruler or government, then I'd rather be dead. And if my dying meant that my family would be given their rights and liberties, then my choice made a difference. But even if that wasn't part of the deal, I wouldn't feel like me choosing death was meaningless.

And, after all, Patrick Henry's words, "Give me liberty or give me death", not only made a difference, they're immortal.
 
Ladybj said:
I get it but what are you are sacrificing, your life and it may not make a difference... that's the sad part. If it made a difference in a positive way... I definitely get it.
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Yes. Making a difference is the fairy tale we were told as young adults to inspire patriotism, further embellished by government-appointed Hollywood. Sacrificing our lives for others by default is (I think) a natural occurrence but intentionally going to your death for some romantic or patriotic conviction is a myth. I am sorry to debunk the general belief but someone's death on the battlefield is never accompanied by, "Hurrah for our side!"
 
Irwin said:
Maybe it was more like half an hour. Now Karen videos are going to start dominating my YouTube feed instead of ZZ Top videos. :ROFLMAO:
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"Karens in the wild" are pretty good. There are others who make videos on the same subject but those are mostly boring and pointless.
 
Warrigal said:
And here is the perfect example of how people take something they read or hear without questioning its veracity before repeating it.

I'm always suspicious of any saying attributed to Mark Twain (or Confucius, Winston Churchill, Oscar Wilde and other familiar names) because a lot of them are bogus. Either completely made up or wrongly attributed.

In the case of the quote about a lie travelling around the world... it is by no means certain that Twain ever wrote it in any of his literary works.

See attached from Quote investigator : A Lie Can Travel Halfway Around the World While the Truth Is Putting On Its Shoes – Quote Investigator
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I apologize for the back to back posts. I am still reading the previous posts in this thread. When I read quotes I really do not care who wrote it nor do I always agree with their point. I simply take what I can use and leave the rest. That is what works for me. I can learn from anybody or anything if I choose to keep an open mind. JMO
 

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