Truth or consequences

Our Constitutional First Amendment guaranteeing freedom of speech is a fundamental requirement for a successful democracy. But false statements produce consequences that threaten our democracy and the well-being of our society.

Fifty-nine years ago, the administration of President Lyndon Johnson falsified information about U.S. operations in the Tonkin Gulf. That falsification was used to justify the invasion of Vietnam in 1965. The Vietnam War dragged on for 10 years and caused disruptions in American society. It lasted long enough, 1965 to 1975, to be directed by the administration of President Richard Nixon. The war cost the lives of 53,000 Americans, and it spread from Vietnam into Laos and Cambodia, causing the death of as many as 2 million people.  The war generated discontent among American citizens and produced a lingering distrust of the U.S. Government. What worthwhile goal was accomplished by the U.S. invasion of Vietnam? We are still looking for the answer.

A little more than 20 years ago, the George W. Bush administration left no stone unturned in the effort to establish a false but believable reason to invade Iraq. Those falsifications included the notion that Iraq was responsible for the attack on the Trade Towers in New York City on September 11, 2001. That was followed by the false notion that Iraq was producing “weapons of mass destruction,” namely nuclear weapons and chemical weapons or maybe biological weapons. All of these reasons for war were false, and the George W. Bush Administration officials knew they were false. During the conflict, the Bush Administration implemented a torture program, a move that was wholly out of step with American spirit and traditions. On the home front, the Bush Administration began secretly spying on American citizens. Those actions further eroded trust in the U.S. Government. What worthwhile goal was accomplished by the U.S. invasion of Iraq? We are still looking for the answer.

Former President Trump established a record for false statements. According to a Jan. 24, 2021, Washington Post article, President Trump made thousands of untrue statements during his four years in office. The most consequential was the repeated statement that the 2020 election was stolen from him. That false statement produced a sad day for America.

Free speech and a free press are essential for the prevention of tyranny and for maintenance of a democracy. But free speech can also be a threat to a democracy if the speech is false. There is no test, no simple procedure to determine whether a statement, spoken or written, is true or false.

The difficulty of distinguishing between true and false is not new, but modern technology makes the problem much more difficult. Social media can send a false statement to millions of people in a very brief time. Social media can also be manipulated so that the identity of the originator is hidden from readers. This means that the intent of the originator is also unknown to the reader. Hidden identity communications on social media can be initiated by foreign governments that are hostile to America. According to the Rand Corporation, “Russia is waging wide-reaching information warfare with the West. A significant part of this war takes place on social media, which Russia employs to spread disinformation and to interfere with the internal politics of other countries.”

It is easy for us to be swayed by something we want to believe. It is equally easy for us to be influenced by a statement that disparages something that we dislike. A lot of information circulates that has not been subjected to rigorous editorial screening. An old expression captures the problem: “buyer beware.”

Jack Stevenson is a retired infantry officer, civil service and private corporation employee who now reads history, follows issues important to Americans, and writes commentary from his home in Pensacola, Florida.