Every Man in This Village is a Liar

Just finished this interesting book with a perplexing title. It follows a journalist who has been covering war since she found herself outside the U.S. in 9-11 and ended being one of the early ones into Afghanistan.

She may write with a little too much drama but I’ve never been to any of these places – Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Jordan, Libya, Yemen - in or out of war.

Her title sums up the conundrum of geo-politics. If someone says they are telling the truth – they are probably lying. If they are lying, well, then …

A Springsteen line perhaps sums this up best: “Trust none of what you see and less of what you hear.”

I know only enough to be dangerous in a wordy sort of way but near the end of the book she – for me – summarizes a sentiment.

Americans – who live in a country with almost no history (200 years which doesn’t add up to much globally) think we can go in and change places, “… make the old go away. All to create a new Middle East. But the old Middle East is still there and where should it go?”

When every man in the village is a liar, who you gonna call?

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