It's very rare for us to unanimously agree on something the QOTW, but this week we have done it! Thank you to ALL who took part, your responses were powerful, heartfelt, and bold. We all agree, NO our governments should not lie to us for any reason really. Maybe you could find an extreme example where it might be acceptable, but right now our feelings are the same. We can not even trust those in power with the things that are in the open. Who knows what mistakes and terrible decisions they have made on our behalf behind closed doors. Well, we don’t have to look far back to remember how the war in Iraq started.. with no debate, and secret fake news from the USA about weapons of mass destruction. Look what a series of atrocities have occurred since then!

We should be able to hold our governments accountable, full stop. If that means that we have to hear news that maybe be difficult to handle, or have other negative effects then we still should be told. We may have to deal with it, and it may be challenging, but we must have transparency back and freedom of speech reinstated! A very relevant example of how this may relate to our current predicament could be a very significant piece of information. If you have access to the statistics, is has been reported that the people at highest risk are those who are obese. A very high percentage of those getting the virus are overweight and unfit. I believe it is possible that this information has been held back to prevent a serious issue of fat shaming and abuse happening in a culture with a huge proportion of obesity. DO I think that is OK, no i don’t. If we knew the truth, perhaps we could do something about it, and find a way to get our culture back in shape!

SO, thank you again to all who took part. I hope you keep sharing your views and posts with us in the ecoTrain community! We are the ones we have been waiting for ;-)

@revisesociology

My answer to this quite straightforward....

IF we believe in decentralised governance, which means involving as many people as possible in the decision making process, which in turn requires that as many people as possible are as maximally informed as possible about the issues under decision, then we can only answer the above question in strongly negative terms.

In short 'no, it is not right for governments to lie to us in order to control our behavior or prevent panic, because that undermines the very principle of effective decentralised governance.

The only way the above question makes sense is if we have a government with sufficient executive power to be able to control us, and if that's the case then we're already in a state of 'failed decentralisation'.

@xyzashu

This is an very important question raised by @eotrain this week.

It actually entails many other questions in it. It also reminds me of classical question for whether it's right to lie for the good of others or to save someone's life?

Philosophically speaking, what's right and what's wrong actually depends on the individuals' perspective as none of us know what's the ultimate truth.

But Intentions do matter.

So the question is not that the lying by governments is right or wrong but are their intentions good enough or do they really want to do good to their citizens by spreading or telling lies?

It's really difficult to believe that government always act in the best interest of their citizens. In the capitalist economic system, majority of our actions are guided by some underlying interest to increase our capital in the long run.

@porters

No, not with the governments we have today and the governing system.

I had lost faith in government some time ago. What pushed me over the edge was when causes I believed in, the party would run for election making promises on these issues then as soon as they got into power they just dropped it.

One time there was a woman who I really believed in and felt could do some good. Wanting to support her I bought my membership to the party she was running for, then I saw she wasn't on the ballot so I called the party office and was told she was too radical! That was the last time I took out a membership to any party.

@nainaztengra

Governments across the world still keep talking about the origin of this virus, who has to be blamed and all. Bill gates foundation is on a strong foot to come up with a vaccine and fulfilling his depopulation agenda, UN says that globally the governments did not come together to fight against the Pandemic and everyone has taken their individual approach rather then a more consensual one and hence we have failed to tackle this situation effectively. WHO has it's own agenda. News channels throughout the day try to spice up the news and sell, Economist gives their own prediction on how the economies are going to suffer in the years to come. Lockdown keeps getting extended week after week.

Where is all of this leading to? Does common man have any idea? I guess NO.
Every elite organization, Government has set an agenda of their own and wanting to enforce it on people in the manner they desire.

@marlenyaragua

I do not justify telling lies. Those who keep telling lies also keep looking for excuses and reasons to justify the lie. Therefore, for no reason do I justify lying, and even more so those in any government who lie say that they are prioritizing the Peace, Security or Public Health of the People who live in a Nation.

For me, it applies to any Nation because the Government, of any country, is supposed to watch over the Welfare and Social Security of its People. In order to fulfill this objective, strategic plans must be drawn up involving programs, projects and actions that must be established to achieve the goals at a strategic level and to be able to cover, eventually, some emergencies. Because emergencies will obviously exist. What we must do is to be as well prepared as possible as a nation, in order to successfully overcome that emergency.

So far I have expressed myself in a generic way. I will now share my point of view regarding the lie and the health emergency that we are dealing with at a global level, which has put public health at risk at a global level.

@shadonchandra

OUR GOVERNMENT IS LYING TO US TO CONTROL OUR BEHAVIOUR OR PREVENT PANIC- IS THIS RIGHT OR WORNG.Covid-19 is going to be the most devastating epidemic in the history of human civilization. It's going to be break every kind of record of death by an epidemic and Composing the darkest chapter of human civilization. The struggle for survival has turned into a war today and everyone in the world has to take part in this war. No one knows where and when this battle for survival will end. At this juncture of life and death, state cooperation is becoming the only means of survival for the people.

@thisismylife

I came across @eco-alex his post about ecovillages and decided to follow this community as it feels like I can learn a lot from the members. I bumped on the compilation post from the previous question of the week when I decided I would see if I could join the next one. So here I am. I think it's nice to introduce myself a bit, although I'm not one to share private details or pictures of myself (sorry, hope it's not mandatory). First I wish to find my way around the platform and connect with like-minded people and see how I fit in. So far my experience on the platform is great, I've had some nice people pointing out some tips that were very helpful for a newbie like me.

@lizelle

A BITTERSWEET WORKER'S DAY

This Worker's Day was bittersweet though, a stark reminder that there already have been many job losses with thousands more to follow in the weeks and months ahead as all companies, except for essential services, had to close their doors for an indefinite period!
Small businesses simply cannot survive.