The (in)credible Mr. Santos: A test of integrity in public life
Whenever money, power, and politics are on the line, there are not just a few who will lie or steal to grab as much as they can.
That’s been true since the dawn of human civilization, which is in many ways defined by its particular social contracts and the layers of safeguards and systems of rewards and punishments that create incentives for citizens to abide by their terms.
The ongoing saga of newly elected Republican Rep. George Santos, however, has highlighted how much various social arenas rely on the value of personal integrity. Many of the ebbs and flows of human interactions are beyond the scope of the systems designed to encourage people to follow the rules. Clothed in notions of honor and social mores, including honesty and citizenship, that contribute to the common good, personal integrity often underlies a healthy, well-functioning society.
Mr. Santos appears to have fabricated of the person he presentedinvolving a stolen checkbook. Despite all that, he was sworn in Saturday morning with the rest of the 118th Congress.
