I'm more pissed off -disgusted- by people who lie to themselves than I am by those who only lie to others. Choosing to lie is an acknowledgment of responsibility; lack of self-knowledge is beginning of the end of it.

Apropos contemporary American politics and social life, and other things:
Robert Pippen, "Authenticity in Painting: Remarks on Michael Fried’s Art History" PDF.
Michael Fried, "Jeff Wall, Wittgenstein, and the Everyday" PDF