Words of Jefferson

 In 1785 Thomas Jefferson wrote a letter to Peter Carr, probably a protégé of Jefferson.  He was the son of Jefferson's sister.

Her wrote the following:

 It is of great importance to set a resolution, not to be shaken, never to tell an untruth. There is no vice so mean, so pitiful, so contemptible; and he who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and third time, till at length it becomes habitual; he tells lies without attending to it, and truths without the world's believing him. This falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all its good dispositions.

https://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/let31.asp

Ah, but only if the current political establishment would take this to heart.

But how do we know when a politician is lying (the old cliche not withstanding)?

First - anything that gets you upset or angry, be suspicious of.  These statements are usually exaggerations or embellishments of items which have just a slight bit of fact.

Second - be aware of projection - this is somewhat new but traces its origination way back - the pot calling the kettle black.  Someone accuses the other of a crime the first has committed.

Third - watch for amplification and spread.  A saying attributed to Mark Twain, but more probably from Johnathan Swift, is the idea that a lie spreads so fast that the truth is always lagging behind.  If everyone is sending it to you or you are being bombarded with a statement - be wary.

How to you be sure a statement is true or false?  In the past you would have to go to the library or find a person with  personal connection.  Today, you need to go to the Internet - set the search parameters BEFORE the statement was released, and do some digging.  I have found that most of the "just found out" items, have already been found and discussed and rarely rise to the level of outrage warranted.

Fact checking sites are useful, but don't just read their summaries - look at their sources. If they don't have sources and references - move on.   If something is important to you - do the research