Problems and mistakes are one thing, but cover ups and lies...?

What do you make of an organization that says one thing in its internal analysis and another to the public?

That is what the Episcopal Church (TEC) is up to right now.

These are direct quotes from TEC's own internal State of the Church Report...

• * ...losses due to the age structure and declining birthrate of The Episcopal Church, as well as losses associated with controversy...
• * ...an aggregate picture of our present state...The observable trends should call all church leaders to action.
• * It should be noted that with the departure of members of congregations, and now leaders of certain dioceses, from our fellowship additional legal expenses have been incurred by The Episcopal Church at all levels, not to mention the expenditure of time, talent and energy. What has, thus far, remained unstated is that as a consequence of this strife substantial funds have been diverted from the mission and ministry of many congregations and dioceses, adding to our financial burden.
• * 64% of Episcopal congregations acknowledge having some kind of conflict over the ordination of gay clergy. And most of that conflict was of a serious nature.

This is what the Presiding Bishop of TEC is telling the public through the media:

Q: Oregon seems far removed from the big Episcopal controversy over gay ordinations --
A: That's a good thing. The controversy isn't that big; it's just noisy in some places. (h/t BabyBlueOnline)

Not that other organzations and their officers don't do stuff like this...

Enron went bankrupt in December 2001 after it emerged that the company had hidden hundreds of millions of dollars in debt through a series of complex financial transactions.

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Richard Nixon and White House Chief of Staff H. R. "Bob" Haldeman were recorded on June 23, 1971 discussing using the CIA to obstruct the FBI's investigation of the Watergate break-ins. He even asked the CIA to slow the FBI's investigation, claiming national security risks. These revelations led to Nixon's resignation...

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Since the banks can't tell how large the black holes (hidden toxic assets - part of what got our economy where it is at the moment) are on other banks' balance sheets, they have no confidence to lend money to each other and they stop making new loans, clogging up the nation's financial system.

And finally, commenter Matthew celebrates cinematic expression of this idea: with a favored quip of the Presiding Bishop, no less.