Can the truth be mean?

Question

Can the truth be mean?

Answer 1

the truth hurts

Answer 2

senlin hit the nail on the head.

how do you decide what is the truth? who gets to decide what the truth is?

Answer 3

The truth is just the truth.  There is no emotional valence attached.  Some may be hurt by the truth.  Some may use the truth in a mean fashion.  But that is about humans and how we handle / use information, not about the "truth."

(And of course there is the whole question of who gets to define the "truth" but, that's another question.)

Answer 4

It most often is; the truth "hurts".

Answer 5

If you tell it to spite someone.

Answer 6

yes, sometimes the truth can be downright brutal.

Answer 7

Of course. If your 65-year-old mother comes over without makeup after a bad night's sleep and says, "Do I look old today?", you'd have to be a pretty big putz to say, "Yeah. You look a bit like the crypt-keeper," even if it's true.

You say, "No, not at all!"

Answer 8

Definitely. The truth can be mean depending on who is hearing that as well, and how they take it. If someone wants a honest, true answer and if they cannot take it, it is going to be extra hurtful too.

Answer 9

The truth often hurts. It isn't always what we want to hear, and sometimes it isn't what we want to know/think about ourselves or others. But it's good to know the truth anyways.

Answer 10

Yes, if said in a wrong way.

Try diplomacy (the real one, not the lying manipulative one) when telling the true.

Answer 11

Were you thinking of me? Yes, unfortunately the truth hurts.

Answer 12

No I don't think so. While at first being honest with someone might be painful, lying can be much more painful in the long run.

There is a lot to be said also for how one takes the truth. Some operate under the philosophy that an offense, is only truly offensive if it is perceived in such a way.

Answer 13

sometimes. but i think there is a way to be truthful without being cruel. like, if someone asks you how they look you can say "you look awful" or you can say "you can do better"

Answer 14

The word 'mean' insinuates an ill intention...and I don't think that accurately can be applied to the truth itself.  But certainly, the use of the truth may be executed in a mean spirited way.

Answer 15

Disastrous. The show " The moment of Truth" is proving that fact.

Answer 16

For a moment it certainly is dependent on what sort of truth is given but even then the pain is mitigated by the superior virtue and probity that comes with true honesty. :)

Answer 17

no but it can be ugly