---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Once you start lying to the public, you…"
description: "\"“Once you start lying to the public, you have to keep lying. It never ends. It’s not easy, either psychologically or practically, to keep tweaking the ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/438/haruki-murakami-21_lying_once-you-start-lying-to-the-public-you-h_337638.jpg"
---

#  Once you start lying to the public, you have to keep…

![“Once you start lying to the public, you have to keep lying. It never ends. It’s not easy, either psychologically or practically, to keep tweaking the truth to make it all fit together. If one person who’s in on the plan makes one little slip, everybody could be done for.” quote by Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/438/haruki-murakami-21_lying_once-you-start-lying-to-the-public-you-h_337638.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/438/haruki-murakami-21_lying_once-you-start-lying-to-the-public-you-h_337638.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/438/haruki-murakami-21_lying_once-you-start-lying-to-the-public-you-h_337638.jpg)

> ““Once you start lying to the public, you have to keep lying. It never ends. It’s not easy, either psychologically or practically, to keep tweaking the truth to make it all fit together. If one person who’s in on the plan makes one little slip, everybody could be done for.””

[Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Deception creates a cascade of lies that become increasingly hard to maintain, leading to eventual collapse.

**In simple terms:** Lying leads to more lying and eventual failure.

Key Takeaway

Avoid falsehoods; stay truthful.

Themes

honesty consequences integrity

Mood

cautious reflective

Type

ethical cautionary

When to use this quote

- political scandals
- corporate fraud
- personal relationships
- media misinformation

Key Concepts

psychology social dynamics trust

Questions to Reflect On

- How does a single slip expose a larger deception?
- What pressures make people continue lying?

A Different Perspective

Lies can be discovered despite careful cover‑ups.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Lying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lying/) [Truth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/truth/)

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[Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/)

## More by Haruki Murakami

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[Explore all 2,928 Haruki Murakami quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/)

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