Regarding “Appearances can be deceiving” … I agree. Evil people exist and are some are quite successful at hiding their evil. Read “People of the Lie” by Doctor M. Scott Peck for the how’s and why’s.

I am generally uncomfortable with your other comments.

Were Mr. Buffet less “rude and ridiculous” his relatives might include Paris Hilton’s “BFF”. I suspect he sleeps well knowing his decisions have not led to the moral decline of those he loves.

Regarding some other postings:

There are many people in this country that get suprised that their lifestyles/opinions affect their professional lives. There are many examples of this from the entertainment industry. What is less obvious is day-to-day decisions that cumulate. That idiot in the right lane is crazy to think I’m going to let him merge just because he thought he could gain a few car lengths … oops, that was a regular customer to whom I was just rude! Or maybe it was a co-worker, school teacher, neighbor, friend-of-a-friend, or police chief! BTW … not letting someone merge is a favorite passtime of many drivers in Mr. Buffet’s home town!

So is it “fair” for mis-steps in life to affect our professional lives? I would first state that I don’t expect fairness. We live in an imperfect world. But given the question, I say yes. We should not be suprised by negative consequences to mis-steps.

Regarding Mary’s comment (#27) … I am one person, not three. I strive, and frequently fail, to be a good person in all areas of life. If I practice patience at home and on the road I am more likely to have a habit of patience that will help me at work. If I am rude and crude at home or when out with the guys I am likely to slip up at work because that is who I am.

I guess I am taking a retrospective approach whereas many of the other posters are looking outward at how they would respond to other’s actions. What does that tell you about me?

On the other hand, Mr. Buffet has literally given billions of dollars to help millions of people the world over. His philanthropy is unprecedented in the history of the world, with a recent $37-billion dollar contribution(not to mention countless millions prior to that). Most of his life outside of his business has been devoted to helping others not fortunate enough to be his granddaughter.

I wouldn’t begrudge the many anything.

I believe most millionaires (or in his case multi-zillionnaire) are not necessarily overly charitable to their families by nature (I read the “Millionaire Mind”, if Warren Buffett fits in that category I don’t know…) Anyway many millionaires don’t help family members beyond helping them with their education as they may be afraid that they would contribute to a life of dependence. Actually I admire his self-control in helping out his niece but knowing where to draw the line…..when you are a multi zillionaire everyone would want a piece of that profit….but people really have to learn to make it on their own in order to become successful. Helping with education is really like “teaching a person how to fish….” instead of feeding them for a day.

Maybe it’s just the culture in which I live but, I have found that getting too friendly with your neighbors is not always a good idea. It just opens up a lot of opportunities for something bad to happen, people are nosy by nature, some are bussy bodies and others will knock on your door every day asking for everything from a cup of sugar to toilet paper. I’d rather say hi and be cordial w/ my neighbors and be regarded as the “quiet one who doesn’t bother anybody.” But of course it’s always best to be a good samaritan, giving out candles when the power goes out, etc.

Reputation is certainly important and your actions count. However, Things we do and say are not always interpreted by others in the same way. It has been shown that we formulate an opinion of someone within the first 30 seconds of meeting them. And everyone is different but some ppl do not tolerate those who are not like them. And things like cleanliness can be interpreted in different ways. The guy who keeps his shop clean as a whistle may not charge you to look around for a tool as the messy guy would. But he may charge you to clean up after he does the work. Maybe the messy guy cant help his disorganization, he could have ADHD or something. We tend to be biased ppl by nature but I think that’s wrong. You have to take the time to actually get to know someone, not only looking at their bio before you can really make an informed decision.

Sorry, Trent, but I’d go to the other shop if it’s cheaper. Appearances can be deceiving. John Wayne Gacy played a clown for kids and was involved with civic organizations. Ted Bundy and Jeffrey Dahmer were clean cut and charming by all accounts. Maybe it makes more sense to donate money saved to charities we select.

Once I had to take a car into the dealership for work. There was some computerized part that my dad did not feel comfortable messing with, so off to the shop we went. My dad took a look around the service area before I dropped off the car, then told me that it was one of the cleanest he ever saw….and that specifically made it a place he would take his own car to be worked on if he ever needed it.

To this day….I refuse to take my car somewhere that is messy. Sure, a messy mechanic could be a decent one, but I really don’t want to pay extra for “labor” when all it may really be is paying for him to find out which pile of junk is “hiding” the part or tool he needs.

I will decide on my own after a while the best places to frequent, but businesses have to know that if they are active in the community it will translate into more sales.

They know they are mixing the two, and they morally justify it. This isn’t necessarily wrong; they’ll just have to watch out for the times when they confuse gregariousness with skill.

We have four people that could reasonably be called neighbors. Three of them came over and personally introduced themselves within a week, as did a few other families that lived relatively nearby. One of those three gave a housewarming gift. The fourth neighbor is really nice, but very, very shy and quiet – you have to make a sincere effort to communicate there.

so just because the guy appears to be good on the surface, if you look in a little, he may be no better or worse then the guy that runs the dirtier shop. the dirty shop boss may treat/pay his employees better actually.

“I sewed sails for 30 years, never a one did break in the worst gales known to man. But do they call me Owen Sailmaker?”

“I built fences for 30 years, never a single animal ever left one of my pastures. But do they call me Owen Fencebuilder?”

“But, you screw one sheep …”