Are We Only Average Honest?
The following excerpt from the courtroom scene in my book, Disbarment, distinguishes the various levels of honesty presented by Seymour Binser, lawyer for the State Bar of Arizona. It is his way of building up to the conclusion that the Defendant's behavior was totally unjustified.
"It's been said that everybody has his price, and that we are all honest, but only to an average degree. Even the more honorable cheat on their income tax returns. Businessmen every day pocket cash revenues and don't report them. This practice is tolerated by society so long as they, of course, do not get 'caught.' Society even has different levels of honesty and it works something like this: It's tolerable to cheat insurance companies, lie about your children's ages at the theater ticket booth, and, of course, cheat on income tax returns.
Seymour paused, collecting his thoughts. Chief Justice Haskins seemed amused by his analysis. Seymour looked at the other justices, not so much to read their faces -- such thoughts didn't occur to him -- but to see if he was holding their attention. Seeing two of the justices looking at the clock bothered him.
He softened his voice, the change of pace causing lowered eyes to rise. "It is less tolerable, but sometimes accepted, if we cheat on examinations, lie about our age to draft boards, steal money from our mother's purse, or forget to tell the cashier at the restaurant that the waitress charged for one bowl of soup instead of two. Then, of course, we reach the intolerable limit.
It is completely intolerable to rob a grocery store or to take another person's life."
-JS
