19/01/2026
Many times we try to take credit for the virtues of our ancestors but the real virtue lies in how we conduct our own lives or the work that we’ve done on a specific project ourselves. Today in world politics, it is important to keep this in mind as some people like to attribute virtue to a person simply because their father did some good things. To consciously earn another person’s trust would entail demonstrating a consistent history of kindness, fairness and respect. If we give too much weight to a person’s family history or familial virtues, then we are setting ourselves up for a rude awakening, whether this be in how we discern virtue in national or global political leaders or in our own personal relationships with others.
Have you ever warmed up in a relationship either personally or to a political leader simply because of a person’s family history of virtue while paying little attention to their own pattern of behavior? How did that turn out?