Is Honesty A Difficult Policy?

It was a challenging day for me today. In 8 years of business, today was the first time I had to tell off a senior manager for being dishonest. Don't people realise that one lie leads to another and then after a while you'll lose track of the original lie and get caught? Especially when it comes to work, how am I supposed to trust the person now that I know he's capable of lying with a straight face even after being confronted. (the guy admitted to lying after much probing) I certainly learnt my lesson when I was 9 when my parents beat me with a cane so badly that I don't think I've told a lie since then.

I know that this may be a loaded statement but from my experience men tend to be more daring liars and yet less convincing ones. Do you agree? Also, are there any justifiable reasons to lie? Let me know what you think either in the Cbox or in the comments.