Lying/Cheating is Always Morally Unacceptable

The Morality of DeceptionI will be arguing that there are times in life when lying/cheating can be morally acceptable. mor·al adjective1. concerned with the principles of right and wrong behavior and the goodness or badness of human character.-GOOGLE un·ac·cept·a·ble adjective1. not satisfactory or allowable.-GOOGLE In todays society, social structure is everything. The general and overall stability of our society today is caused in large by people being ‘good’. The word ‘good’ is simple, however it encompases a suprisingly large catagory of human actions. These include such things as truthfulness, selflessness, kindness, and so on. All throughout our lives, we have been taught to be strictly ‘good’, and that we are to never stray from that path. Should we stray from it, we are to be punished. This is not only enforced by our parents, or mentors persay, but also society as a whole. Be as it may, what if one was to ‘lie’, or ’cheat’ in a good way, or rather a way that benefits more than the culprit themselves. My own belief is that while ‘lying’ or ‘cheating’ as a whole can be categorized as ‘bad’, there are certain sub categories within the one that can be of mutual benefit to all. The idea that ‘lying and cheating is always wrong’, is absurdity. There are indeed times when one individual may become conflicted in any given situation because they believe in that moment, that were they to lie all would be solved in a justified manner. In a more specific approach, how would you respond in the unlikely event that a terrorist approached you, and said he would kill you on the spot if you were an American. Of course you are going to start frantically denying that you are American and start speaking Arabic, thereby lying, and cheating the man. The liar is simply doing so to prevent his own doom. Is that wrong? As were the wise words of Brian Fantana, nope. In terms of cheating in a competitive aspect, it is usually unjust. The only remotely possible way to cheat in a game or competition and still keep your honor, is in the instance that the person whom you are cheating, is cheating as well. In doing this, are not simply making the competition fair once more? All of this goes back to to the classic rule that is well known by anyone who grew up with a sibling. The quote “Don’t hit back!”, said by every multi childbearing parent ever, means simply that if someone either physically or mentally attacks you, ignore it and the issue will resolve itself over time. While this quote seems reasonable, the idea it encompases is highly contradictory, as it basically instructs you to remain idle while being harassed. So, when someone is cheating you, should you cheat them back? The answer is uncertain. While I myself do not condone lying and cheating, I do believe it is an inevitable part of human nature. For the most part, cheating someone has morally negative effects, however there seems to be some instances when it can be reasonably justified, whether someone is preserving their own, or others safety and well being, or even if they are just evening the playing field. The bottom line is this. I lie, and you lie. If for any reason you said you weren’t a liar, you would be most certainly lying all over again. -Jayden P.