Sure,  Lance Armstrong was a world-class cyclist who won many titles. Sure, he  is a high-paid athlete and once much sought after endorser for many  products. But why should we care that he used banned substances and now,  more particularly, why should we care that he lied?

Yes,  I know that he won a very public battle with cancer. Yes, I know he  established a foundation that has helped and continues to help many who  have been afflicted with cancer and survived what once was certain  death.

But do we place too much emphasis on athletes and winning at all costs?

Do we place athletes and celebrities, such as those in the entertainment industry, on too high of a pedestal?

Do we transfer our own dreams and aspirations to these individuals that excel in competition that most of us only dream about?

If  we are going to get so upset with Armstrong "lying" to his fans, the  press, the world, shouldn't we redirect our frustration and disgust over  lying to those individuals that have a real-life impact on our daily  lives?

I am talking about our elected officials.

I am talking about our ministers.

I am talking about teachers and counselors.

I am talking about our employers.

I am talking about even our parents and family who also "lie" to us from time to time.

Sure  I know the argument that sometimes a little white lie is less harmful  than knowing the truth. But doesn't this point to the hypocrisy of our  society?

Let's  face it. Americans love to be lied to. We don't want to know the facts,  but what sounds good. To quote from "A Few Good Men", we can't handle  the truth.

If  we were truly so self-righteously indignant over Armstrong or Barry  Bonds and so on and so on lying to us, why do we keep electing people to  Congress or the White House or to local and state offices who we know  have lied or will lie to us because it's "for the greater good" or in  the "interest of national security".

We  don't want the truth. We adore liars. We elect liars. We put liars on  our screen savers and applaud the biggest whoppers told.

That  is until the liar gets caught in his or her lie. Then we are quick to  jump all over the lying scum bag. Then we are offended and outraged that  this person or that person could have not been honest with us.

Yet,  the biggest hypocrites are we, the people. We keep lying to ourselves  every day. We keep belieiving what we want to believe no matter how  fanciful that belief or thought may be.

Woe to the man or woman who is not so skilled at the art of lying that he or she gets caught.

How dare that person think that we will tolerate such an infraction of the public peace.

How does the children's poem go? "Oh what tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive."

From  the Cornfield, I do believe knowing the truth will set us free. We are  set free to live in the real world and not in a fantasy land. But also I  believe that most of us are too enamored with the world of  make-believe, lies and innuendo to ever want to go back to reality.

Again, if in fact Lance Armstrong lied. Why should we care?