Re: opinion and statements

In a message dated 6/23/01 9:54:18 AM, fortytwo@GDN.NET writes:

<< I'd say no.  I'd say "The child thought he was lying", or at most "The
child 'lied'". >>

    I think my main point was that you have to trust that what people tell
you is what they actually believe.  If what they believe turns out to be
"wrong" somewhere down the line, so what?  It doesn't matter that much.  You
can't build trust into a language.

-David

P.S.: The child could have said ANYTHING other than "the next door neighbor".
 In fact, it would have changed the type of lie had she, for instance, said
that he'd done it himself.  It was just mere chance that he hit upon the
"truth".  And as a parent (if I were one, I'm saying), I'd be more concerned
about the intent rather than the outcome.