Advertisements are full of it. Your boss has to bullshit with you to keep things rolling smoothly at work. You had to bullshit a little bit to get the job in the first place. The Olympics are ripe with it. Elections rely on it. There is an area between the Truth and the outright Lies where we find our Gross National Product: Bullshit.

I was at work, finishing a project with some students. A co-worker and I were talking. I told her that I was reviewing the new Woody Allen film, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, and it looked like I was going alone. I often go to movies alone, but a single guy at a Woody Allen film is a pathetic sight. One of my students, a 13-year-old girl was passing by and overheard my plans. "That sounds fun," she joked, "let's go."

This week, we lost a giant in the music world. Isaac Hayes, 65, was found dead in his home Sunday. He will be remembered as a majestic, funny, and important figure in our culture.

Good weed and extreme violence! PINEAPPLE EXPRESS is a solid installment in the proud history of Stoner Cinema. Pound for pound, this has got to be the most irresponsible genre in all of film.

By SANDY BOTTOMS ON CULTURE

The Responsibility Project has been launched, a blogsite and short film collection about "doing the right thing." They seem to avoid the E-word that our site likes to throw around, but they are somehow getting at the same thing as this ethics magazine, it would seem. The site encourages you to "send your story" of how you took personal responsibility in a situation.

Like many others who are in public service, David Behen, the Deputy Administrator for Washtenaw County, would like to encourage others, and especially people in their 20s and 30s to join him. And when a2ethics.org talked with David, his honest and forthright appraisal of the ethics of his work, made us want to give civil service a new look. Yet, these are hard times. So, how does an administrator who has to make tough decisions that are economically-driven because of diminished resources and money, determine what is the right thing to do?

I am not really asking for advice here. Instead I am giving advice. You asked about whether you should have a mission statement at a2ethics.org. While I understand the reasons for creating a mission statement, such as having a shared vision for employees in an organization to bond over, mission statements are like some opinions written by the Supreme Court. They are always vague and admit to many interpretations.

Hippie musical 'Hair' returns to New York's Public Theatre. Far out!

The ethics of shopping have become a huge concern for many consumers. Shopping takes a whole lot longer when you have to read the ingredients, plus where it is made, what it is processed with, before you search the net for a consumer report. You spend more money on the products that do not test on animals, products that come from local independents, and products that come from more ethical companies. You are on your way to being a mor ethical consumer. But it's still not enough.

Today, August 5th is primary election day. In Ann Arbor, that means voters will be deciding the probable winners for the mayoral race as well as for City Council. There has been a lot of talk over the past decade (at least) about how America has become a nation of like-minded enclaves and clone communiities, where people hold the same political views and come from the same socioeconomic class.