A conversation with a friend led to this question:  is it unethical to be cynical? On the surface it would seem that one can hold most any outlook on life they choose without much disruption to their moral sense.  It’s an outlook, not an action and ethics is about what we do, not how we view life. But let’s take a closer...

“This is President Barack Obama. Whether I’m facing the bitter cold of China’s foreign policy or the bitter winds on Capitol Hill, I can do it in comfort and style in my Weatherproof™ jacket. It’s rugged and waterproof, yet soft and comfortable.   “So whether I want to get in touch with my inner Thoreau, or just discuss finance policy on...

On Fox News Sunday (Jan. 3) former anchor, current pundit, Brit Hume made the following statement regarding Tiger Woods: “He’s said to be a Buddhist; I don’t think that faith offers the kind of forgiveness and redemption that is offered by the Christian faith. So my message to Tiger would be, ‘Tiger, turn to the Christian faith and you can make a...

Back in the rough and tumble of the old west (courtesy of ‘50s-‘60s television) justice was the theme and Paladin its most ardent champion.  In fact, the name comes from the twelve knightly champions of the medieval king, Charlemagne. Have Gun – Will Travel was the calling card of the man dressed in black, and who was, essentially, a gun for...

In the cut-throat world of fine Parisian dining, the food critic is King.  In the Pixar movie Ratatouille, Anton Ego (superbly voiced by Peter O’Toole), is Emperor!  “The Grim Eater” as he is known, strikes fear into the hearts of anyone even thinking about offering a new dish without his “divine” approval. In my little niche of essays on ethics, I strive...

In 1940, journalist Edward R. Murrow stood in a church in England while the country endured German bombers night after night. Inside the church was a crudely written sign which read, “If your knees knock, kneel on them.” I don’t know about you, but my knees have been knocking a lot over the last several months. Within the last year,...

Of all the high-profile people I’ve had the opportunity to interview, Santa Claus was just about the toughest “get” (next to the Dalai Lama). First of all, he’s incredibly busy in the weeks leading up to Christmas. However, he consented to give me an early interview if I would stop leaving multiple, corny messages on his iPhone. I also promised that I’d...

Miracles come in many forms. Sitting in a rice paddy in Vietnam in 1968, infantryman Dennis Haines heard the cries of a baby or small child, “Just as I looked towards this hooch,” Haines recalls, “I saw what appeared to be a door swing open and a flash.  The next thing I remember was my buddy John cradling me, telling...

The Greeks called it arête. Traditionally translated as “virtue,” its central meaning is excellence. In the Iliad and the Odyssey, arête is applied to courage and strength, especially when exhibited in competition and this is one common dimension. But it’s more. The third aspect of responsibility, the pursuit of excellence, carries an ethical component when others count on our effectiveness at a given...

A conversation with landscape architect Isabelle Greene led me to discover that integrity can take many forms. Like the framework of the gardens she designs and creates, her principles are likewise, clear and exacting. Isabelle is the granddaughter of Henry Mather Greene, of Greene & Greene Architects, pioneers of the early Craftsman movement in Southern California. “These principles and ideas seem...