Fraudulent misrepresentation is rampant in the social media age. People are obsessed with imagery. Marketing is all the rage. Little lies compound into big lies and there is no informed consent anymore. The government does it. Everyone does it! The world is in a mad dash and few slow down to check the details.
Lying by omission means to withhold pertinent information to an arrangement between parties. We can think of obvious cases, like makeup and lingerie moguls who owe their appearances to cosmetic surgery or high level singers who doctor their vocals in order to sound more perfect to the average listener. The trickier cases to catch are dependent on internal states, like a person not having sincere contrition in an apology or a building contractor taking advantage of a client with no expertise.
The worst kind of lying by omission happens from parent to child. Parents will not bear true testament to their own motives, unlived dreams, regrets, or will hold onto family secrets – covering up abuse and playing the fool when a kid grows up and starts to sniff around the scene of the crime. Parents withhold themselves from their children. They impart to them very little. A bit of television, some Internet time, some crap government schooling, some scare stories from the media, and a bit of time with others. That’s the extent of their commitment. They do not live for their children. They withhold their real self and the relationship becomes a lie that serves only evil. Or parents will live for their children, undergo some tragedy like a divorce or a loss of job, and then clam up and withhold the emotional and spiritual nourishment their children need. This is lying. It is usually done out of neglect, avoidance, or indifference but it is indeed a form of lying. Living like a zombie is a lie.
You bring a child into the world to be a parent to him/her, not a zombie. That’s not upholding your end.
