Caught in the Act

Yesterday I was cited for a moving traffic violation for the first time in my life. I can’t complain. After all, it was completely merited: I was going the wrong way on a one-way street.

Let me make clear: I was very aware of what I was doing. My rationale for doing it was that it was only a quarter-block in an empty residential street and, surely, no one would notice. How wrong I was! Before seconds, an officer was trailing me with his lights flashing. I was caught in the act.

I should’ve known better. Wrong-way drivers annoy me and I’ve always found this particular behavior to be brash, dangerous and reckless. So the question then is, Why did I do it? My subconscious reasoning at that moment probably ran thus: I’ve never gotten ticketed before because I’m a very conservative driver. I hardly ever go past 35mph. It’s only a quarter-block on a deserted residential street. I think I get a pass this time. What my subconscious Voice of Reason should’ve told me was, You yourself deplore this behavior so don’t subject the members of this community to this same type of shenanigans. After all, that’s hypocrisy. And even worse, it’s plain recklessness.

My good friend Vic Conant highlights the personal flaws of Bill Clinton, Kobe Bryant and Martha Stewart in his audio CD series, This I Believe. These three individuals can be described as being morally upstanding; however, minor character flaws eventually blew up to become great public downfalls. It happened because, little by little, they began to make more immoral exceptions in their behavior that were ultimately doomed to catch up with them.

I commend the officer for the great job he did. I was a weasel and deserved my ticket. I have resolved, however, to tune in to my higher reasoning in the future--and to stray from hypocrisy. Character is built by the consistency of integruous behavior. And no matter how conservative a driver one is, one should never make reckless or illegal exceptions. But here’s the profound lesson in all this: No matter how upstanding one is in life, one should never make minor immoral exceptions. These can potentially pave the way for major moral injunctions. That’s what happened to Bill, Kobe and Martha.

Don’t let it happen to you.