Society & Bullshit - Essay Example

Running Head: Society & Bullshit Society & Bullshit [Institute’s Introduction: Frankfurt defines bullshit as “It is just this lack of connection to a concern with truth—this indifference to how things really are—that I regard as the essence of bullshit" (Noah, 2005). This definition clearly signifies that bullshit is not a lie, and any bullshit can be substantially true yet still a bullshit. Bullshit a Threat to Society:Bullshit is a threat to society’s commitment to truth seeking because of it very fine difference from truth or lie.

If it is not a lie, which it usually is not, then it would give the look of truth and would satisfy the society need to seek the truth without the requirement for them to put in efforts and move out of their comfort zone. As bullshit does not reject the authority of truth, it has a power to pose as truth thus captivating the society. In this manner, it is a bigger enemy of the society than lie (Noah, 2005). Political Discourse and Truth: A democratic and civilized society being aware of its basic right of truth and justice expects its country’s political disclosure to be based on them.

It is important for the political discourse of the country to rely on truth so that the citizens are correctly aware of every situation concerned with their country. Lying, misrepresenting and bullshitting the nation will not only misguide it but would also hinder the society’s growth (McCormack, 2005).In the recent years, the U.S political discourse has become all about misrepresentation, falsifying the truth and lying. The dealings of recent governments depict that there is no place for truth in today’s political culture.

President Bush era is a real and proven example of government lies and misrepresentation to the public. His lies and deceits have increased public mistrust in the government. It looks as if today’s political discourse is least concerned with truth seeking and providing it to the public (Arendt, 2009). Examples:One of the most famous examples of bullshit in the recent history of U.S political discourse is of President Bush State of the Union address in 2003. Financial Times reported this that the famous war justifying 16 words in the President’s address ("The British government has learned that Saddam Hussein recently sought significant quantities of uranium from Africa") (Noah, 2005) were bullshit.

Use of word “learned” rather than “concluded” signifies these words as bullshit. Although these words might be true, but they were bullshit as at the time of making this statement the president and his staff did not have evidence to support their claim, so they were bullshitting (Noah, 2005). These 16 words were bullshit and will always remain so because these charges are still unproved. The U.S president bullshitted his nation for justifying his act of declaring war on Iraq. Another example recent example of bullshit by the US government is that of 2009 when President Obama said that he would cut the budget deficit of $1.

3 trillion, which he interested, in to half (Davis, 2012). The President knew that it would be an almost impossible task to achieve, but he still proposed it with confidence. However, as expected, the sluggish economy continued to grow with the deficit of around $ 1 trillion. The situations still has not improved much as it promised, but the White House believes that their policies are working (Davis, 2012). Conclusion:Recent political discourse is majorly concerned with bullshit and truth seeking is not its focus.

However, this is only one-half of concern the other half is that the majority of the American public is still buying and believing this bullshit. ReferencesArendt, H. (2009). “The Politics of Lying and the Culture of Deceit in Obamas America: The Rule of Damaged Politics.” Truthout. Retrieved on March 1, 2012: http://www.alienlove.com/modules.php?name=News&file=print&sid=3166Davis, S. (2012). “Obama wont come close on pledge to halve deficit, CBO says.” USA TODAY. Retrieved on March 1, 2012: http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/story/2012-01-31/obama-budget-deficit-report/52907098/1McCormack, J. (2005). “Justice and Truth in Political Discourse.

” Loyola University Chicago Law Journal, Vol. 36, pp.520-532. Retrieved on March 1, 2012: http://www.luc.edu/law/activities/publications/lljdocs/faclawsymp/mccormack.pdfNoah, T. (2005). “Defining Bullshit.” Slate. Retrieved on March 1, 2012: http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2005/03/defining_bullshit.html