Sadly I think most of the politicians would dodge the question because they are in the election winning business. They want the congressional pin, or the all night parties on Airforce 1 . Elections are not about the “people” rather they are about a particular person.

The question that needs to be examined, why do we lie to ourselves? If we lie to ourselves is it ,like the great philosopher Nelson Muntz once said ,“A victimless crime , like punching someone in the dark.” I think the reason we lie to ourselves is because we know there is a bridge between how our life is and how we want it to be. Very rarely do writers who get rejected say “Well it go rejected because it was a horrible manuscript and there is no market for a novel that has one word written on each page.” We lie to ourself over full cups of coffee and crumpled up packs of cigarettes saying that we are thinking of some great idea or resolving a character conflict when in honesty we are merely smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee.

Most of the time living in disreality does not affect  anyone but yourself. However when it does , the affects can be quite devastating to those around you. Then, given your current state of mind , you are more likely to create even more disreality to cover the pain and the anger . It only , of course, causes more pain, and more anger and you start falling down a rabbit hole that quite possibly you can never climb out of.

Facing your fears, facing the trouble and pain you have caused in other people’s lives is one of the most difficult things to do.  I know , I have spent the better part of the past year doing just that.People might hate you, you might realize how much you hated yourself, whether it be how you acted as a parent, or a coworker, or a writer, When someone hates you, unless you are in a prison with them , eventually you get some breathing room. When you hate yourself, when you are disappointed with yourself, when you fear how people will think about, when you hate yourself it is something you cannot get away from.  But your choices are  living blind or living free.

The only way to get away from yourself  is to cure your blindness. No one can do it for you.

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Joshua Keidan is the self proclaimed and inherently   cool unofficial official spokesperson for Generation X.  He has not won a Nobel Prize but, among his random other things he wants to do, is planning on it at some point in his life or, failing that he will find somewhere to score free pizza.