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i am rather interested in this A. C. Grayling fellow, if only for one simple thing. Plato did not believe that lies infect the soul of the lier. a significant portion of the Republic was set aside to describe the process of "noble lies" that must be told in order to maintain society, and indeed to fulfill one's praxis and be a good (just) ruler. if any of you are interested in this question, see plato's myth of the metals in the republic, and to a lesser degree, the tale of the ring of gyges.
the simple truth, as i see it, is this: lies are neither good nor evil. what importance we put on them is based on our individual biases and prejudices one way or the other. a lie to accomplish good can be good, or it can be evil, just as one to accomplish evil can be good or evil. Perception is the only reality. if you feel you should be honest with your mother even on her death bed, then you must act according to those beliefs. if you do this, you have done well.
alternatively, if you feel you must lie to her, then lie. good and evil, right and wrong are just words, and we define where one ends and the other begins.
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