Reader question: Please explain “telltale signs”, as in “some telltale signs of lying”. My comments: Telltale signs are, literally, signs that tell, that tell the tale. You see, telltale is sometimes spelled with a hyphen, as tell-tale. So tell-tale signs are signs that tell the tale, the true tale, that is. Tell-tale signs of lying then are signs, outward signs of someone lying, telling a lie. We understand that when people lie, they are less relaxed and less assured, they don’t look at you in the eye as much, their heart beats faster, they repeat themselves much more than usual, etc. and so forth. But, I have to admit that yours truly is no authority on the matter. I’m no expert at all on this subject. I am not sure, you see, if any of the things I’ve just said is true even though by hunch I think they are all true. I think they’re all true but I am also very doubtful. Take, Donald Trump, for example. The new US President is known for being a serial liar, aside from being a successful businessman and a TV star. When Trump speaks, he kind of repeats himself all the time, more or less every other sentence. My question is, is he lying all the time, or what? Perhaps professionals can handle this. Perhaps businesspeople, politicians and people who are on TV a lot are well trained enough to pull it off. Like it is with everything else, practice makes perfect. I guess if you lie often enough, you will get better at doing it. Eventually, you’ll be able to do it without blushing, without batting an eye. |