The Economy, Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Healthcare, Taxes, Energy Independence – all are important actions Americans want to see accomplished by the next Congress and President. But, before they can begin to tackle an unprecedented “to-do list,” Congress needs to start by reforming how government operates. According to the Gallup organization’s annual Governance poll (Sept. 2008), “Just 26% say they are...

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Earl J. Hickey is a low-down, sneaky… well, maybe I better let him tell you. “You know that guy you see going into the convenience store… a sort of shifty-lookin’ fella who buys a pack of smokes, a couple of lotto scratchers and a tall-boy at ten in the morning? Well, that guy is me!” Just when you thought there were...

No, not that change.  We already know that in 11 days, former Illinois Senator Barack Obama will become the 44th President of the United States. I’m talking about a few other changes taking place in Washington. Former Idaho Senator Larry Craig has (finally!) given up efforts “to withdraw his guilty plea stemming from his 2007 arrest in a Minneapolis airport bathroom,” the Washington...

Years ago, long before the Tonight Show, Johnny Carson hosted a game show in which couples were brought on stage.  The man would be asked a series of questions and offered a choice:  he could either answer the question himself, or trust his wife to come up with the answer. The cash prize was limited, but what really held your interest...

Looking at two recent films, I was struck not only by the similarities in deception but how the underlying aspect of fear transports individuals to act in unethical ways. Frost-Nixon is about the final disintegration of a man’s character. (For some, that would be assuming Nixon had any character to begin with.) But what the film shows us is how easy it is...

The events surrounding Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich’s decision to appoint a replacement to the United States Senate seat previously held by President-elect Barack Obama grows denser and unnecessarily more controversial. The New York Times reported (Jan. 1) that Gov. Blagojevich “…had an emissary make a call on the Dec. 24 to Danny K. Davis, a Democratic representative and longtime African-American...

Continuing my conversation with Bradley James and his time spent with Mother Teresa.  Bradley talks about a side of Mother that most people never saw. “People always ask me what she was like. “We know her as this Nobel Laureate, but what she did as a woman, a Western, European woman in Calcutta, India by creating that religious order in that...

Although faith is not an ethical value, its importance in driving ethical conduct should not be underestimated. In fact, the word faith comes from the Latin fidere meaning ‘to trust.’ According to the Dictionary of Philosophy and Religion, “Faith is an attitude or belief which goes beyond the available evidence.” Bradley James is a composer, pianist, singer and public speaker.  In 1987, his...

An economy in crisis, rising unemployment, mounting foreclosures, once trusted financial institutions and respected individuals involved in fraud and malfeasance by elected officials. In such perilous and unprincipled times, it can be difficult to find gratitude much less express gratitude in our daily lives.  And yet, a recent e-mail from a colleague who works at the crossroads of media, business...