Always Doing the Right Thing

I work very hard at doing the right thing, all the time. Fortunately, what I consider the right thing is often at odds with (and more fun than) much of popular (and even less popular) culture's idea of what is the right thing. It does not appear to me, however, that most people share my idea of the right thing to do (judging by their behavior). Nor is there overwhelming evidence that the masses are working very hard at always doing the right thing. In fact, it is my opinion that most people adopt a certain tolerance for a certain amount of wrong-doing. And if right and wrong are something that you get from someone else, then this is probably a healthy perogative: It is a little subversive, a safety valve for the soul, and can make life a little more fun.

If, however, you work very hard at determining what is right and wrong and reject others' assessments of it (whenever you first become aware of the possibility of right and wrong in some action or thing), then a tolerance for a little wrong-doing is a harder swallow. I fall into this latter camp, working very hard to figure out what the right thing to do is (in any given situation) and then doing it (regardless of others' opinions or even the consequences, though both figure heavily into deciding the "right thing to do").

I have no idea which is the superior mode of living life. Both have their problems, and it seems unlikely that any person fits into one mode exclusive of the other. But I do know that once I've decided or acted (working hard to get to action, normally), I can be quite a bear when accused of doing the wrong thing. And, as a matter of course, I then land squarely into the camp of the wrong-doers.

This is all to say: I'm sorry.