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My family and I as of late have been getting into Better Call Saul. In case you don't know, it's a prequel TV series to Breaking Bad, although it's a lot more family-friendly. Unlike Walt, the ex-chemistry teacher who tended to use his high intelligence to solve problems, Saul, a small-time lawyer, tends to use his charisma and cunning. Even though he's a bit of an anti-hero, you can't help but like the guy.

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Watching Saul and the other lawyers in the show engage in gladiatorial rhetoric is a spectacle. They jump back and forth between logic and sentiment, truth, half-truth, and lies. We watch lawyers representing good people, bad people, neutral people, confused people. Saul himself increases in ruthlessness over the series as his career and character are continually targeted by both friend and foe.  And if the show wasn't already juicy enough, there's a side-narrative intertwined with Saul's story: we watch Mike, an old, retired police officer slowly drift into the world of organized crime, despite the good and honorable intentions he set out with.

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Why am I talking about this? Because it's a great TV show and you should watch it. But also because I'm trying to ask a question:

 

At what point to people begin to compromise their moral codes for the sake of their own progress?

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Let's not pretend like we live in some magic fairy-tale world here; lawyers, scientists, advertisers, soldiers, doctors, priests, pastors, rabbis... it doesn't matter what profession; eventually, everyone, at least once in their career, comes to a moral crossroads where they can either do the right thing and be punished, or do the wrong thing and be rewarded. That's how it works East of Eden, friend.

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I've known a clergymen who has turned a blind eye to a philanthropic adulterer. I've known sweet girls turn sour. When faced with adversity, usually the first thing people throw out the hot air balloon is their ethics. Anything to keep the balloon in the air.

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People will find themselves in a situation where their peers are pressuring them to lie, or to keep something secret that shouldn't be secret. People will be pressured into pushing projects they suspect may be doing more harm than good. Data is falsified. Reports are doctored. Keep your mouth shut if you know what's good for you.

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It comes to us all. I can only pray that when I come to that moral crossroads, I will choose the right and hard path

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