Ethics Bites

The Self-Portrait Called Character

The following is from a "Radio Chat" presented by Michael Josephson on KNX Radio. It is printed here with the author's permission.

"I was on a radio show talking about what I called the growing hole in our moral ozone when Steve called to chastise my naiveté. He cheated to get into college, he said. He cheated in college to get a job. And now he occasionally cheats on his job to get ahead. Cheating is part of our culture. So rather than urge parents to teach kids to be honest, he claimed, I ought to urge parents to teach their kids how to cheat.

"Tempting logic. In fact, lots of people cheat and most of them get away with it. Why should a rational person be ethical? This age-old question is at the core of our personal philosophy of life and the concept we have of our selves.

"To those who see their lives and derive their happiness purely in terms of material acquisitions an unethical life is a viable alternative. If Steve is smart enough to avoid all the traps and pitfalls of this sort of life and never get caught -- an unlikely scenario -- he may even achieve a sort of happiness.

"But those who care about other things -- about relationships, about peace of mind, about living a worthy life and being admired and remembered for it -- know that people like Steve are a bit pathetic.

"We paint the self-portrait that we call our character by our actions. We can choose to paint that portrait in the pale watercolors of shallow successes and short-lived pleasures or in the deep, rich oils of love, honor and reverence for our human potential.

"The happiest people I know are those who find purpose, meaning and self-respect in pursuing a vision of a good life guided and measured by enduring moral virtues. They realize it's demeaning and self-defeating to get caught up in the daily quest for profit or advantage. People like Steve have no idea of the price they're paying for the little they're getting.

"The importance of what you do goes well beyond what it gets you; it determines what you are. And what you are is infinitely more important than what you have."