It’s hard to tell if a lefty is self deluded or is intentionally dishonest, or a mixture of the two.
As Sowell pointed out in his “Intellectuals and Society”,
“intellectuals” stop examining a topic or issue at the point
where they feel good about themselves for being “on the side of the angels”.
This is why they only credit themselves with being “a good person” for “saving the earth” and “caring about the poor” and will not further examine the destructive nature of the policies they promote to “accomplish” these goals. Feeling good about oneself IS the goal, and once accomplished, no further examination is done or required.
I'll say "it depends." Sometimes the evidence admits a clear conclusion. I've seen Juan Williams, for example, agree to a counterpoint when confronted with evidence; then, minutes later (on a different program), revert to the premise he knew and agreed was shown to be false. The programs were both on FoxNews, and both were live, so there was no mixup of "time order" to this observation.
Not to say everything Mr. Williams says is a willful lie; just that I caught him at one. A thoughtful person would remember a significant (and agreed) correction that happened less than an hour previous; and would temper future public assertions.
But, I don't think knowing whether the story is a willful lie or not matters, at bottom; except as we humans are inclined to judge character. The writings say what they say, and stand or fall of their own weight.
Here they are recast slightly.
I
Thou shalt create an illusion of invulnerability shared by most members to foster excessive optimism and encourage extreme risks taking
II
Thou shall not allow any member to question the group's inherent morality, instead members shall be encouraged to ignore the ethical or moral consequences of their decisions
III
Thou shalt promote collective efforts to rationalize in order to discount warnings, or other information that might lead members to reconsider their assumptions before they recommit themselves to their assumptions
IV
Thou shalt reinforce stereotyped views of enemy leaders as too evil to warrant genuine attempts to negotiate, or as too weak and stupid to counter whatever risky attempts are made to defeat their purpose
V
Thou shalt self-censor any deviation from the apparent group consensus, inclining each member to minimize the importance of their doubts and counterarguments
VI
Thou shalt create and maintain a shared illusion of unanimity concerning judgement conforming to the majority view
VII
Thou shalt apply direct pressure on any member who expresses strong arguments against any of the group's stereotypes, illusions, or commitments, making clear that this type of dissent is contrary to what is expected of all loyal members
VIII
Thou shalt appoint mindguards to protect the group from adverse information that might shatter their shared complacency about the effectiveness and morality of their decisions