Yeah, the fact that you lied still remains. The severity of it differs depending on how soon you told the truth and if the lie had done damage yet.

Was it a white lie or a corking big fib?

You lied, thats just plain it. But because you admitted to it you are basically asking for forgiveness which may cancel out the lie depending on how big the lie was.

If you murdered someone, then admit to the murder, does the murder still count?

It's already been told, but it puts your status back to basically honest.

Count for what? I'm not sure what you mean. Does it go on your running list of sins for God to examine before letting you inot Heaven? Is that what you mean? I don't believe in such a thing. What matters in this life is what we do, how we treat people, and apologizing for hurting someone might not change the past, but it can ease their hurt. What more could you want?

There is no easy answer to this. It depends on who you talk to and what their moral beleifs are. I believe the correct answer to this question would be yes, it still counts, but if you ask me, I would say that if you faced the person you lied to and admitted in full, this "cancelled" the lie.

Of course it still counts. It just makes the one who lied feel better.

Yup, it sure does!! On top of that, the person knows for sure that you lied, and the trust is damaged if not gone entirely.

For the record, I did not lie. It was simply a curiosity.

It was still a lie. Being honest is one of the hardest things for a human being to do. All of our respective knowledge is based on what we believed to be true at the time we learned said knowledge. To tell a lie, knowing it was one at the time it was said, would indicate that the person had some sort of ulterior motive for lying. If that motive is entertainment for both parties involved in the lie, then I think I would consider it less a lie. If the motive is to get an action or thought pattern out of a person (i.e. manipulate) then I would still consider it a lie and the person not worthy of trust. . Unfortunately, going back to what I said regarding how we process what truth is to each of us, it's next to impossible to prove that everything we know is truth making lying a very common practice, especially when an individual leads you to believe a truth they themselves can't prove. . Awesome question.

If you killed a child and than had a child would there still be one that isn't anymore? Yes, of course. +5

1) In a world without time like that of elementary logic, it would not count. Take back a negation and you come back where you were originally. However, a lie happens in time. And plays with persons and facts. In this sense, the lie has happened and was present in the world between two instants, and it cannot be suppressed in time. However, in some cases, you could suppress the lie in the present. This would mean: to create a situation similar to that which would have developed if the lie had never happened. You would have to eliminate all the consequences of the lie, compensating for the deceptions, the damage (material or psychological). In many cases, it is not possible: how do you compensate for wasted time? or for the destruction of not replaceable works, or even living beings? Further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lie 2) An important aspect are the consequences of the lie for the person who did the lie. A traditional way of suppressing those consequences is through the Sacrament of Penance (in Roman Catholic teaching). Please notice that in this case, you are not usually admitting the lie to the person who was deceived in the first place. But you are supposed to make some compensation, as far as possible. Alternatives would be to tell the justice or the police, or have a psychotherapeutic counselling. Further information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacrament_of_Penance_(Catholic_Church%29 3) "By definition, a lie is a dishonestly made statement. It is a wilful misrepresentation, in one's statement, of one's beliefs. Both a truthful person and a liar could hold false beliefs. We should not uncritically regard an untruthfully made statement as an untrue statement, or a truthfully made statement as a true statement. The only instance when a lie is necessarily false is when the liar's corresponding belief that was distorted was true. In other instances, the lie could be either true or false. We conclude that a lie is not necessarily a false statement." Source and further information: http://www.sorites.org/Issue_17/abstract.htm

you still lied. admitting to it doesn't really change that fact.

Once you tell a LIE ; it has been told ... so the lie STILL counts ... Admitting to it softens it a little ; BUT it is still a LIE. +5

Yes.. Lie to me once and I assume you're always a liar so don't bother trying to patch up your bullshit with me. I won't buy it.

Of course it still counts as a lie.