Not a word? If not, consider it coined. To me, this is the foundation for the action of one who has integrity. When you check Webster to discover the definition of integrity you find: “…the quality of being honest and fair”. Quality. When you discover some of the synonyms you read – virtue, goodness, decency, honesty, etc. The point is that you can trust the (person, thought, belief). Trust – another quality and one that underscores integrity.
‘My country – right or wrong!’ This use to be the stand of most Americans. Perhaps this was the belief some 50 years ago, but I seriously doubt that it still wholeheartedly exists. ‘Back then’ there was a trust in the leadership of our country – that they honestly were doing the best that the could and held a ‘no harm’ protection toward our country and its people. However, in recent years the leadership, defined as all branches of government (legislature, executive, judicial), has shown itself to be self-serving, greedy, lazy, etc. Basically, not deserving of loyalty or respect. No one seems to act unless it is in their best interest.
Now what do we do? We can’t/don’t trust the leadership so the saying of ‘my country, right or wrong’ has little validity because of our lack of trust in their honesty. We have seen too often that the leadership can be completely dishonest and duplicitous. One simple example is healthcare; our leadership has foisted upon the people of this nation a ‘plan’ but exempted themselves from having to adhere to it. Why would any of us follow someone we know isn’t worthy our allegiance and holds a double-standard?
Another issue has been the sell-out by the leadership to ‘political correctness’, which should never trump our foundation. And one should never forget that political correctness is based on shifting sand. Remember the old saying that if you stand for nothing you will fall for everything? True. There’s another saying by Burke, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” This is what political correctness robs us of when it is the basis to beat down any opposition to popular opinion and current ‘correctness’.
Our country began with citizen lawmakers and now we have professional legislators. Perhaps it is their vested interest to remain in office that gets in the way of effective and fair legislation, or perhaps it’s a belief in their own infallibility. Whatever the reason, our behavior as a nation toward other nations and toward our own people is unconscionable. Integrity shouldn’t be something we have to think about – it should be the automatic basis on which we speak and act.
