What can we believe?

Today's see-saw between optimism and pessimism about the Iran war (reflected in see-sawing oil and stock prices) wasn't anything new.  But it had me in a reflective mood - have we reached full Pravda mode?  For those too young to remember, in the 1970s and 1980s, Pravda was the official news agency of the Soviet Union - they put out what the government wanted them to put out.  And the thing was - it was basically 90% lies, and everyone knew it, including domestic and foreign readers, the Soviet government, and Pravda itself.  Pretty much the only thing you ever knew for sure was that things weren't the way that Pravda had just described them.

I've been feeling that way a lot recently - the Iran war, the ballroom, the indictments of the President's political enemies, the tariffs...the list goes on.  And pretty much, you know that whatever the Administration had just told you was the only thing that couldn't be true.

Upon further reflection though, I realized it's not just a Trump Administration problem.  Think back two years when President Biden's team was telling the country "he's as sharp as ever".  The Trump Administration's lies are often more egregious, and personality-wise, President Trump is an easier person to dislike (and therefore disbelieve), but there is no denying it's not limited to one party - it's an equal opportunity affliction. 

So that's how I was feeling, when I came across Clay Jenkinson's most recent Listening to America essay on the same topic.  He has different examples but largely the same conclusion, which he calls "the Destabilization of Truth".  It's a good read, and I recommend it highly.  And as is commonly said, the first step to fixing a problem is acknowledging that it's there.