June 15, 2025

A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is still putting on its shoes.

Unknown, but misattributed most commonly to Samuel Langhorne Clemens (“Mark Twain”) (1835–1910), American writer

Assuming this is true, why is it so? And if this was true in Twain’s time, how much more is it the case in the internet age?

Try as I might, the only way I can account for the veracity of the statement is that the truth is pure, self-effacing…and naïve. Only after we experience the harm that comes with lies can we learn to dress as fast as a firefighter.