Konstantinos Konstantinides Amphiktyon writes
Themistiou from the Tormentor or Philoteknon: “No kind of evil is so hostile to social life as the lack of faith (trust). This is the evil against which there is no easy means of protection. Even in the oath, an abuse is made. An unbeliever who does evil denies it, and violates his oath. However, there is another lie that does not harm other people, but is a disgrace to the one who uses it, that is, this does not consist in saying or doing something against another, but concerns the one who uses it: Either he says inferior and less than what he has, or superior and more imposing. And the first is called irony, and the second arrogance. And that which is inferior to reality is both witty and attractive and sometimes not useless for the philosopher. That is why Socrates used it in his discussions, when it was necessary to ridicule a sophist full of arrogance and arrogance. For such people feel their nothingness more deeply when, by examination, they prove themselves to be more ignorant than the one who pretends to know nothing. But the other kind of lie, which exaggerates reality, is heavy and burdensome, and no lie is so burdensome as self-praise, especially when someone praises himself for his education. So, as regards truth, we will not consider a soul disabled, which hates deliberate lies and itself avoids them, and when others lie indignantly, but the unintentional lie he accepts easily and, when he is caught somewhere being ignorant, he does not indignant, but like a pig he rots in ignorance”
Plato to the sophist: “When we say that the sophist deceives us with imaginary and not real constructions then what shall we say anyway that our soul is deceived with false doctrines by the art of the sophist? That is what we will say. And what is false doctrine? That which admits the opposite of “beings” (really)? The opposites: So you mean false doctrine accepts “non-beings”? It must admit that “non-beings” exist in some way (indirectly) because only in this way can one formulate false doctrines about something, even for a while. Now pay attention to this. There are not some who support and the opposite, that is, that there are no “beings” (that is, those that definitely exist); Yes, and this is not a lie? Of course it is. I think, therefore, that a statement must be considered false for the same reason, the one that says that “beings do not exist” and “non-beings exist.” Of course. For indeed, how else could a statement be false?
Commentary:
1/ Themistius (Paplagonia, 317 – 388), also called Euphradis, was a politician, orator and philosopher.
2/ At that time, declaring less than what you have was not considered a harmful lie and Socrates often used it. Today, however, when deputies and other categories of officials are obliged by law to declare “Where did you get your money from?” it is considered serious. crime because it is done through the theft of the people
3/ Today’s wealth does not come out with a megaphone to list its wealth, it does so with a large and expensive life that escapes the seizure of the tax authorities
4/ Mr. Mitsotakis declared war on Russia without Russia attacking or threatening us. It is not Russia that has occupation in Cyprus, but Islamofascist Turkey. However, with Turkey he signed a “Declaration of Friendship and Good Neighborhood” for “calm waters” and let everything be orderly
5/ The media has become a means of mass deception and a means of false news and the misguidance of the people, which is why citizens are turning more and more to the internet
6/ Everything tends to become imaginary idols and people “non-beings” , but also the “beings” have become a virtual reality. That is why the life of the “beings” is becoming increasingly torturous
7/ Modern sophists tell us that the “illegal immigrants who invade the country daily by the hundreds and thousands, but at the same time they tell us that there are not very few” while the country is filling up and new cities are springing up everywhere like mushrooms. They have evolved the art of the sophists with modern technology and AI and the petty politicians are deceiving us (18/5/25)
*Amphiktyon, Lieutenant General (retd) Konstantinos Konstantinidis Author, Member of the Society of Greek Writers amphiktyon@gmail.com http://amphiktyon.blogspot.com/ https://amphiktyon.org Anyone wishing to be deleted should return this with the indication “deletion” “in accordance with article 14 of law 2672/98