I think it's a sign of propaganda that people read ill of the dead as true bad things the person did. Pretty catastrophic for that to be such a majority take. It obviously means not to lie about people who can't defend themselves. Admittedly the Latin transl. seems to play a part. (Chilon of Sparta)
I think the classical context is lost on the vast majority of people who have the saying filed away with others related to “civility,” like “Never talk about religion or politics at the dinner table.”
Yeah. And it's pushed by abusers to hide things, such as their own connection to the abuse. Anything to stop people from openly discussing anything and learning.