The Art of Deception

In economics, like in war, the best propagandists prefer the language of euphemism to straightforward, ignoble fact, the latest in obfuscatory jargon to the jarring reality of truth. Why, that's not a dead mother whose children are uncontrollably weeping over her corpse as we speak, that's collateral damage; that's not a fraudulent investment that turned out bad for some rich banker who may, god forbid, have to cancel his daughter's private tennis lessons with Anna Kournikova, that's a toxic asset.

Like any other illusionist, the better practitioners of the art of literal and economic warfare cloak their actions in mystery – things are never quite as simple as they seem. No, that box doesn't contain two women, just one who I cut in half! No, we're not just stealing your money to give it to rich people, we're restoring systemic confidence! And they do it for the same reason: to deceive.

Larry Summers, former top economic adviser to Barack Obama, is a master when it comes to making theft and exploitation sound banal and almost respectable. In an Op-Ed this week in the Financial Times, “How to save the eurozone,” Summers predictably urges policymakers in Europe to follow the American lead and guarantee one thing and one thing only: Keep the rich, well, rich. And make 'em richer if you can.

To just come out and say that anybody making above a certain six-figure threshold gets to play by different rules than the unwashed masses would be uncouth, albeit true. Summers, faults aside, knows this. But when the purported economic genius speaks of the need for “a clear commitment that, whatever else happens, no big financial institution in any country will be allowed to fail,” there's no getting past the meaning.

And when he condescends that "Teaching investors a lesson is a wish not a policy,” He's being a bit of a dick, yes.
~ from It Starts with an 'F' But It Ain't 'Freedom' by Charles Davis ~

In my opinion, Davis strikes the nail on the head. The leaders of this country -- it's true almost everywhere -- are master deceivers. They shroud even the simplest facts, policies and strategies in layers of manipulative deception. Nothing is ever straightforward; there always seems to be a wag the dog element involved.

It doesn't matter what the issue is -- everything is presented with spin. And, far more often than not, this spin is utilized to injure the masses in order to prop up the already rich and powerful!

Long ago, Lao Tzu saw this same dynamic at work. There are many lines in the Tao Te Ching which speak to the art of deception. In terms of Davis's essay, here's a snippet from Verse 65 that immediately came to my mind.

Why is it so hard to rule?
Because people are so clever.
Rulers who try to use cleverness
Cheat the country.

It was true then and just as true now.