Google & political lies

The volume of lies this political season is overwhelming, especially online. They seem to almost always be made in support of Republican candidates. I wondered if the way I was set up online and in Facebook was simply directing all such anti-Republican postings toward me. Are not lies being associated with the Democrats just as frequently? Research was done to see how often the possessive form of the party name was followed by the word "lie" online. The chart below is the result. Corrections are welcomed! bbetzen@aol.com

Google study of terms related to political lies
(Right-click and hit "open link" to enlarge and/or print.)

It appears that the art of the political lie for political gain may have been perfected during the time of Karl Rove at the turn of the century, developed through examples such as the Swift Boat exercises, and is now used with abandon.  It appears to be dominating political dialogue. Is our democracy in danger if the public cannot be educated as to how to verify facts?  Or will this method of winning votes ultimately be exposed to the general public for what it really is before we endure another decade like the last one?  Lies contributed to the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives, and trillions of dollars, dollars that are now part of the debt we are leaving our children.

Trust but verify! This is a brilliant phrase often used by President Reagan.  We all must follow his advice with all political statements being made in this exceptionally dangerous time.  We must not have another decade like the last one.