2+2=4. The purity of this simple equation reflects the order, rationality, and beauty inherent in nature. The formula never changes, is absolutely reliable, and crosses all language, age, gender, political, and historical boundaries. Unlike our endlessly conflicting ideological ideas, it is something all people can agree on. Wars are not fought over whether 2+2=4. That's because the equation is clear, unequivocal, and backed by evidence, not an abstract idea backed by belief and faith. Math is a model for addressing life as if thinking matters.
 
Math allows us to do the seemingly impossible like invent computers and put men on the moon. It is the language of the universe, even permitting us to 'see' things in deep space far beyond our vision and to peer into the tiny quantum world where matter disappears and waves, subatomic particles, and probabilities reign. There is no uncertainty or ambiguity if the math is solved correctly. The answer will always be the same. 
 
2+2=4 is a metaphor for all of reality. The equation is a reflection of what fundamental reality is and is not. It is order and predictable truth; it is not random and irrational. Truth does not depend upon the opinions of a legislature, courts, police, parents, teachers, or ministers. Mathematical purity is just there whether or not we obey it.
 
Discovering the certainty in nature is what science is all about. The more we learn, the more it becomes clear that law governs everything in reality. Moreover, all of out technological progress rides on the shoulders of the laws of motion, electricity, gravity, nuclear physics, chemistry, and the correct answer to 2 + 2. The more we know about these laws and obey them, the more we can create and the better we can keep our machines working.
 
This presents an interesting and logical conclusion. Let me express it with the formality of a syllogism so its simplicity can be clearly seen:
 
1. All activities in reality are governed by laws.
 
2. Humans perform activities.
 
3. Therefore, all human activities are governed by laws.
 
Now I know this seems absurd since any one of us can do almost anything we choose at any given time. We can stop whatever we're doing right now and go give money to a poor family or slip in their back door and steal whatever they have. Free will seems—at first glance—to negate our neat little syllogism. I will spend this and the next chapters trying to convince you it does not.
 
We may treat life as if we can make five, six, or even more out of 2 + 2. That's what lying, cheating, stealing, defrauding, and faking it are. We think we can add together zeros and get something for nothing, or put in just a little and get a lot out, or not do the work but get the reward. If that kind of math were used to put a man on the moon, he might end up on Pluto or in the ocean—dead by either route. Faulty ethical equations don't usually get people to a good destination in life either.
 
As for what the laws of ethics are, they are not in a book or reducible to a universal equations. They are by and large within and situational. It may seem like a contradiction to say that a law is situational, but all laws are that way. A leaf is heavier than air and should fall straight to the ground. But that is not always the case. They can go diagonally, horizontally, and even vertically. It all depends on the situation, including the shape of the leaf, its weight, whether it is wet or not, the wind, altitude, temperature, and humidity. Ultimately though, the leaf must fall. Similarly, the correct ethical choice in a given situation can depend on many variables and long-term effects. But ultimately there is only one correct choice.
 
Our innate sense of the math of ethics makes Hollywood billions of dollars. That industry has thrived by entertaining us with stories condensing the math of life into a brief movie. The good guys eventually prevail and the bad guys get their due. That's the ending we applaud because it adds up. It is a correct 2+2=4 solution that makes us feel good because we have an internal ethical calculator that goes haywire if things don't compute.
 
True, it may seem at times that we can cheat the math of ethics. We think we can get something for nothing, or do wrong and suffer no penalty. We might rob a bank and escape the pursuers. We could think we got away with it if nobody saw us. But that would be just a temporary perturbation in the equation, a little glitch in the calculation on the way to the final result. The final result will always be, 2+2=4. Any undue temporary gain will always be eventually offset by loss or penalty that will negate the benefit so that the right result, 4, will always emerge. Life cannot be cheated. What we put in, we get out. It adds up unerringly and perfectly. How could it be otherwise? The universe is perfect and unerring.
 
Since we are an integral part of the unerring universe, we are ultimately held to that same standard. Every blood corpuscle, bone cell, muscle fiber, and neuron in our bodies is made of molecules and subatomic particles that must obey the laws of the universe. The thing that we identify as self does not transcend these components and set apart from the rest of the universe that must obey law. Free will may permit choice, but it cannot deny the consequences for wrong choices.
 
Those of us who have lived enough years see this truth because we have experienced in real time the equation balancing out. Those in their youth, on the other hand, are easily deceived because they are in the early part of the equation and think they can cheat the math. They naively think that cleverness will conceal wrongdoing and that time will erase memories and any pangs of conscience. But time is merely the opportunity for the scales to be balanced, for the surety of the equation to work out, and a subtraction in the form of a penalty to be levied. Unjust gain is always just a temporary minuend from which paybacks will be exacted.
 
Remember those dreaded red marks the teacher would make on our math papers in school? The same corrections happen in life if we try to cheat the ethical math. In some cases the penalty is obvious by way of physical injury, monetary loss, ostracism, or even death. These can be meted out by society, or they may occur independently. Something we think we got away with as a child may not revisit us with a price until later in life when we reach a better state of understanding. Regret, guilt, and remorse for something we cannot correct because of the distance in time, or the irreparable damage done, may be the most awful of all penalties to pay. This understanding helps us see that we are our own best policemen, that we should correct our own papers, or better yet, listen to our inner ethical voice and get it right the first time.

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​Unfortunately society as a whole seems increasingly bent on denying ethical math and bringing us all along in a fraud. We see huge movements afoot to challenge and deny standards. All mores are seen as disposable and open to debate. To see what I mean, just watch TV, surf the web, and open your junk mail and Internet spam.
 
This morning I opened yet another letter from a dignitary in Nigeria. It seems that my name has been discussed with great regard in the highest circles in that country. I learn that the Royal Princess Abdulla Takyumony Grace III, the Royal Highness of Mt. Royale Timbuktu, (or whatever) needs my help. She has been separated from her vast treasures by a coup. Her emissary needs me to sign some papers as an "esteemed" person to help this poor damsel in distress recoup her millions. If I do, they will give me 20%. If I participate, all the transactions will give me perfect security since the prestigious law firm, Dewey, Cheatum, and Moore will handle them. Fair enough. I agree with everything, especially the part about me being esteemed and getting all that free money. If I do a little digging though, I find that this is a fraud bulk-mailed to tens of thousands. If I were to follow through I would need to deposit some money that is "guaranteed secure" (just as a formality) to get my share of the Princess's millions. Hey, what's a few thousand when the return is millions? I could even end up in Nigeria penniless (as some have) when it is all over.
 
I just e-mail these generous folks back, "Shame on you for trying to defraud me. Find something honorable and decent to do with your life." (Unfortunately this tact did not work. Instead it put me on a mail list and I now receive emails from damsels in distress all over the world wanting to give me money.)
 
In my daily load of junk mail is a big red envelope with a large officious notice: "MONITORED SPECIAL DELIVERY." It looks like it is from the IRS, CIA, or the like. It says, "Monitored identification code on enclosed documents." How could a person not open that? Inside is a questionnaire. It seems they want my answers to questions about an air filter. Me buying their filter is not important, just my answers to the "monitored" questions. More lies, more fraud.
 
The trick seems to be tricks and how many of them people can get away with. This mentality of defrauding as many people as possible pervades the media, marketing, politics, commerce, and even the professions. Many instances of this have been detailed in previous chapters. Modern medicine, nutrition, pet feeding, government, and environmental and social issues are viewed merely as profit centers or opportunities for short term benefits, not as responsibilities to bring the world to a better state that only truth can deliver. It's like everyone wants to pretend that there is really no right or wrong, that standards are purely arbitrary. As long as a deal is greased with money, we supposedly can thumb our nose at the whole idea of ethical absolutes.
 
Nonetheless, the underlying laws in the universe (including the ethical ones) remain and they exact their price regardless of our agendas. Modern ethically challenged society is like a car dealer who tries to close a sale by saying how much money can be saved by not changing the oil and ignoring the low oil light indicator. A person might save a few dollars, the inconvenience of oil changes, and prove for the moment that car maintenance 'ethics' is just so much nonsense. The price paid later when the pistons seize up and the engine has to be replaced is the inevitable balancing of the ethical ledger. Such is life if we allow ourselves to be fooled by society's Hansel and Gretel witches who would lure us with cookies of instant gratification and quell our fears with promises that there is no downside.
 
As math is true, so must we be true. We are anchored to an exacting ethical existence that demands goodness in every respect. Doing what is right in our lives has no downside. It will always ultimately get us to the correct answer to the equation, the peace and fulfillment of a life well lived.