Chinese Tacos

I was sitting in the Brooklyn chapter of the House of Miller the other night slamming down a bag of tacos from my favorite Chinese Mexican place (yes there are actually Mexicans who are Chinese) watching a program on the Parthenon (I do this sort of thing ) wondering if the ends justify the means.
You see the construction of the Parthenon apparently cost the good citizens of Athens at the time the equivalent of tens of billions of dollars; this in spite of the fact that about half of them thought it an eyesore and a waste of valuable resources (I identify with the Parthenon sometimes). It seems that the structure was really a monument to the architect’s (I forgot his name – something Greek I suspect) ego and ultimately led to his demise at the hands of said citizens. I sat and wondered about the ends justifying the means.
Do the ends justify the means? I was really thinking about my own situation of course: just because a thing can be done does not necessarily mean that it should be done, and ego is a perilous foundation on which to base any venture, just or unjust. So do the ends justify the means? The answer would seem to depend on the ends.
Is it OK to violate your moral code (sin) or the rights of another in order to gain material wealth? Probably not. But, is it OK to violate your moral code or the rights of another in order to prevent someone from committing murder? Probably so. The question only becomes truly gray when one examines where the line is. Ahhhh…where is the line? And how does ego factor in? Does it blur or obscure the line, or does it change one’s perception of the line in some subtler way?
It has been said (I used to know by whom – Hitler maybe) that blind unreasoning will is the most powerful of human forces and that reason is only a light that the will has kindled for itself in order to better attain the object of its desire. Unreasoning will or ego is certainly a dangerous thing and I am a living example of this. Ego should be handled with great care (asbestos gloves and goggles). It should be regulated or at least have a warning label (contents under pressure – extremely volatile). There should be Senate hearings or maybe an after school special.
I stand at the precipice of that line, at a crossroads – my decisions now – any decisions – carry great consequences for myself, Zach and Miranda, and once made cannot be unmade. Do the ends justify the means?