The world is a complicated place. There are different nations, different races, differing cultures and religions, different values, good and evil, right and wrong. How do each of us fit in?  What should rightfully be expected of us and how do we interact with each other?  Parents have a responsibility to teach their children how to cope and how to sort things out for themselves.  But what should we teach them? Increasingly, the common wisdom (isn't that a great oxymoron?) is to say that everything is relative and that our actions should be dictated by the circumstances in which we find ourselves.  For example: If I'm cold, I put on a sweater; if hungry, I steal food.  Or something like that.  

The point that I'm making is that there is much granting of moral equivalency to quite disparate situations. I believe things are really more black and white than the overall shade of grey that seems to characterize today's ethics.  We must have some code of behaviour to live by and it must consider as inviolable the rights of others to their life, liberty and property.

In this 'Dear Zachary' series, I write about my interaction with my son, my perception of the world and its foibles, my frustrations and celebrations. In short, I address just about anything that might have some value for my son Zachary as he grows up.