Russia's Primary Enemy: Truth
The battle rages 24/7, 365 days, and few in the West understand how devoted Russians are to lying.
Fyodor Dostoevsky, the great Russian writer of what I like to call “psychological thrillers,” said, “In Russia, the people steal.” Dostoevsky was correct, and to be honest, Russia is what the economist Francis Fukuyama called a “low-trust society” in which stealing is common. The art of stealing, however, could not exist without mastering the other skill, lying. Russians are pathological in this regard.
Russians, however, I would not say are “liars” in the way we think of someone being a liar. We all know people who incessantly lie to hurt others or steal other people’s belongings. Donald Trump is a liar. A person who murders someone else and then denies doing so is a liar. Russians, though, are born into the lie. They are born to perpetuate the lie that always makes Russia look pure, innocent, better, smarter, and, in comparison, more righteous than all other nations.
Overall, the average Russian knows that the reality is not what the “official truth” is, but they will push that truth because it is their national duty to perpetuate that lie. When sitting with other Russians, during brief moments of clarity, many will admit that the reality is a lie. Most Russians didn’t accept the reasons for Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, and for the first few months, the lie was being rejected by most. The moment the lie became the official truth, and the possibility of even being punished rose for not aligning with that truth, most Russians, without much hesitation, stifled their inner voices and toed the party line. Then, all the justifications and “proof” they need to embellish their truth are served on silver government platters via the TV, newspapers, etc.
The ultimate goal of all this lying is to ensure that Russia always looks good. It’s like the helicopter parents who can never admit that their child did anything wrong. It’s always the other child’s fault. Russians, it almost seems, know how screwed up their country is, but to admit as much threatens to make them look bad. From the earliest ages, all Russians living in Russia learn to use the lie to avoid taking responsibility for anything that could make them look bad. This lying permeates every facet of their lives, including personal relationships. Having lived there for 30 years and been married to three Russian women, I can tell you from experience that the “little lies” are non-stop. They don’t draw blood, but they leave itchy welts and also leave you scratching your head and asking: Why lie about that?
When dealing with Russians in professional and political settings, it is often, sadly, like dealing with children.
When kids lie, it’s not a sign that they’re on the road to delinquency — it’s a sign that they are developing important psychological skills. One is “theory of mind,” the ability to recognize that other people can have different beliefs or feelings from you. In order to lie, your child has to realize that although he knows full well that he broke your vase, you do not. Lying also requires “executive function,” a complex set of skills that includes working memory, inhibitory control, and planning capabilities. Your kid has to hide the truth, plan up an alternate reality, tell you about it, and remember it. Good job, kid (Children Lie)!
There was no reason Vladimir Putin had to lie about the role of Ukraine in the attack on the Crocus City Hall last week. We all know why he wants to show the link, but no one in Russia has been buying the leap he is trying to make. Nonetheless, if you ask a non-believing Russian — living in Russia — about Ukrainian and U.S. involvement, they will default to accepting Putin’s viewpoint so as not to make Russia seem chaotic or bad. Putin is unrelenting in pushing his “big lies,” and in ways that resemble Trump — or vice versa — he is talented at making his version of the truth until it becomes everyone’s version — and it will soon enough.
Putin knows that most Russians can easily jettison their personal beliefs for any alternative reality, regardless of how ridiculous and unbelievable that reality may seem. He knows that anything can become everything if he positions it as a crucial truth to making Russia look good. Because most Russians spend their lives practicing this skill personally, accepting anything as a national truth becomes much easier — and completely without any moral qualms.
I am, of course, not saying that all Russians abide by this anti-moral code of truth. However, based on my 30 years of experience living in that country, I feel safe in saying most live accordingly. Is there personal integrity? Yes, it does exist, and like anywhere I have met people who are honest to a fault. Nonetheless, the understanding that sometimes the lie has to be accepted for the collective good — and in Putin’s Russia — one’s personal safety exists in Russians, and when push comes to shove, it’s not many who are willing to accept Russia’s sins.
Currently, Putin is struggling to contain the truth about the Crocus assault. Many are asking why the security services so blatantly failed. Putin’s fear — because he is a coward and he fears everything — is that the wrong combination of Russians will finally understand that he is bad for Russia.
Suddenly, the lie will be seen for what it is, and the truth that Putin hates Russia will finally become the one most are willing to accept. Are we far off from this moment? Probably, but not as far as it seems.