AskReaders: What are some ethical life choices we should all be making?

We asked our regular contributors through e-mail, What are some ethical life choices we should all be making? We got many interesting responses. Here are some of them. We have just copied and pasted their responses, not editing them in any way.

1. We’ve got to use less plastic.

– TheJuggernautReturns

2. We should all do our part to keep parks and beaches clean not expecting others to pick up litter and debris after us.

– Back2Bach

3. Try to take small steps to be a better person. Let people merge in traffic if it’s safe to do so. Let people who have much less than you go first on line at the store. Put the shopping cart back. Don’t litter. Hold doors for people. Use your manners. Compliment people. Think about things from other’s perspectives.

It’s not hard to do at all and it makes the world a little tiny bit better of a place.

– chriscrosscram

4. Always check to make sure the seat is clean before you leave the stall.

– SikoraP13

5. Don’t bring kids into the world that you can’t raise properly.

– tuobagnikniht

6. A living will and power of attorney why they are important ethically

– Pin-Up-Paggie

7. Stop revolving your identity over the things that outrage you and instead focus on the good things you contribute to the world.

– TheOneAboveAll

8. There is a great magazine and website called “Ethical Consumer” which looks into different suppliers and companies and helps you make more ethical choices.

Link for those who are interested: http://www.ethicalconsumer.org/

– Loud_and_Angry

9. Driving – Don’t ride bumpers, cut people off, or go under the speed limit in rush hour, ever. Stop texting while driving. And for the love of god if you’re not the fastest one on the road MOVE TO THE RIGHT.

Shopping –  Spatial awareness, don’t leave your cart in the middle of everything. Don’t act like the product is a luggage carousel and get so close to it while you’re thinking about what to get that no one else can get theirs, either. And be NICE to the employees. They’re making $8 to $10 an hour, and do not have a direct line to the CEO unless you’re shopping at Zappos. If you have a problem, find a manager or write to corporate later. Or just stop shopping there and go somewhere that bothers you less. This also applies to call centers.

Reduce waste – This is HUGE but it’s a hard one for most people because the garbage gets carted away to places where most of us don’t see it or smell it or have to deal with it ever again. But seriously, how much food and general junk do you throw away every week that was probably unnecessary? There are a thousand ways to reduce your carbon footprint. Try, if for nothing else but the planet your family lives on and your kids are going to have to deal with if you have/will have them. There are no infinite resources on this planet. None.

Stop and think about what your actions will do to others. Is turning on the light and blender at 4 AM going to wake my spouse/roommates/kids? Is it that important I do this right now? If I call in sick today because I feel just a little crappy and 100% lazy, am I totally screwing with my work friends? Am I at least trying to pay people back in kind for what they do for me?

– silversatire

10. Reduce your consumption of disposable products. (E.g. switching from disposable plastic bottles to long-term use water bottles.)

Re-use as many products as you can. (E.g. filling your water bottle from the tap, unless you live in Flint.)

Recycle any product that can no longer be used for its intended purpose.

Simple steps. May not always be easy, though.

– StuHardy