An Old Man Once Told Me, "Some Things That Are True Are Not Very Useful."
What of the corollary: Some things that are not true are useful? This lens explores the claim that lies can sometimes benefit those who believe in them.
Newton vs Einstein
Useful lie and uncomfortable truth collide.
Aspects of Newtonian physics (ex: mass of moving objects remains constant) have been disproven by Einstein's relativity (ex: mass increases with acceleration). Yet, engineers and everyday people still operate by Newton's laws and they serve us well. I am not saying that we do well in spite of adherence to Newtonian physics, but rather because of adherence to his laws. Some things that are not true are indeed useful. The Wager
Roll the dice on truth
I believe this was implied by Blaise Pascal in his Pensées, relating to belief in the existence of God. "Pascal's Wager" can be summarized like this: - "God is, or is not."
- There are some people "made in such a way that [they] cannot believe [in God's existence]."
- It is best for these people to "bet" that God does exist.
- Because if God does exist and the person believed; eternal reward. However, if the person did not believe; eternal punishment.
- And if God does not exist, then the person had a good life anyway (because of his belief, however erroneous) and there was no harm in believing that He did.
Pascal on Amazon
Pensees and others
Pensees (Penguin Classics)
Amazon Price: $8.64 (as of 12/26/2009) 
Pensees and Other Writings (Oxford World's Classics)
Amazon Price: (as of 12/26/2009)
Christianity for Modern Pagans: Pascal's Pensees
Amazon Price: $11.53 (as of 12/26/2009)
The Tie-In
Does it hurt to believe in a lie?
The tie-in to the assertion that some things that are not true are useful comes from point 5: If you wager that God does exist but it turns out that He does not, according to Pascal, you had a good life and no harm is done.
Is this true (that there is no harm in believing such a falsehood)? Are some lies useful? And if they are, is it morally permissible to use them?
Is this true (that there is no harm in believing such a falsehood)? Are some lies useful? And if they are, is it morally permissible to use them?
What do you think?
Are lies ever useful?
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- Margo_Arrowsmith Margo_Arrowsmith Nov 13, 2008 @ 5:15 am
- Pascal actually was just trying to get people to stop arguing about it. He wasn't coming down on one side or the other.
The Best Einstein Quotes
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Reply
- silkop silkop Aug 20, 2008 @ 3:28 pm
- Pascal's wager is idiotic for two reasons
- if the all-knowing God exists, he would have certainly realized that you were attempting silly tricks on him instead of believing honestly; so you lose the wager
- if the all-knowing God does not exist, you've wasted lots of time and resources doing silly stuff rather than living your life to the fullest (it's certainly not a cost to be taken lightly)
So either way you are the loser if you accept Pascal's wager.
by cactusdo
Back to my USA home after two years as a volunteer in Belgium and France, found a lovely wife and we're figuring out life together. (more)
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