Doing the Right Thing

Is it really so hard for people to do the right thing? Is it because we are lazy that sometimes we don't do the right thing? Or is it because we don't know what the right thing is? Or, is it that we just don't give a damn?

My feeling is that most rules about doing the right thing can be summed up in two bullet points:

• Don't lie.
• Don't cheat.

Let's take the act of littering; people who litter aren't doing the right thing. They are cheating by not throwing their garbage into a garbage can; they throw it wherever they happen to be at the time. What are they thinking? Studies of littering behavior show that most littering is done in the environment where the litterer lives. Why would a person do something to make his or her environment uglier? I don't get it.

Let's take the act of taking something that does not belong to you. You know, stealing. A lot of it is done as shoplifting. Perhaps it's a thrill to do this; I don't know. But it's cheating, pure and simple. You didn't pay for it, but you took it with you anyway. And someone else has to pay for it in the end (the shopkeeper, probably). How can you justify your action? How would you react if it was your shop that I shoplifted from? Would you think I was cheating or not?

Some people who sometimes cheat don't cheat if someone's watching them, but readily cheat if they know they can't get caught. I can sort of understand this behavior. But my question then is do these people have a conscience? Do they believe in God? Do they have any moral fiber at all?

People are strange. People are diverse. People are people.