Who to believe 2?

When Europeans first went to the Americas the indigenous people were quick to notice that the white man speaks with forked tongue. They were silver tongued devils who would promise everything but deliver nothing.

Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) wrote about the reality of ruling. He notes, amongst many other things, that, for political leaders, “The promise given was a necessity of the past: the word broken is a necessity of the present.”

A quite astonishing modern example is the vow made by three leading UK unionist politicians shortly before voting in the Scottish referendum. They publically vowed to deliver a set of wonderful things if there was a no vote. There was a no vote. Within hours they were reneging on their promises which they obviously did not intend to keep. Machiavelli would have been proud of them.

Ordinary human mindbrains take easily to cheating and deceit. Those trained in hospitality management are quick to flash their ‘have a nice day’ smiles; and second hand car salesmen are well able to look you directly in the eye and to give a firm handshake while passing you off with a dud.

Human beings are also sensitive to gossip – ‘What will people think?’ Much attention is given to status symbols eg the supermarket you shop in, the newspaper you read, the TV programmes that you watch. These and many other cultural features signal your place in the hierarchy, eg whether you are working, middle or upper class. By having clear cut signs and signals everyone knows their place and there is no need for fighting.

These days there are professional mind changers in education, entertainment, and advertising. And there are politicians, economists and corporations punting propaganda. How might we decide who to believe?