Interesting thoughts; I’ve had similar ones from time to time.  My comment about the public perception of lawyers - namely, about how negative it is - is that people are frustrated by the ever-expanding maze of laws they have to deal with.  There may well be a connection to the disconnect between mainstream society and religious morality (though I wonder why du Toit, as a self-described atheist, wouldn’t recognize the ironic absurdity of his concerns over manners: if there is no God, and no objective standard of behavior, who cares?).  And finally, I must mention how impressed I am that you managed to locate a section of one of du Toit’s posts that wasn’t filled with expletives.

I’ve made the same argument.  If there is no external basis (God) for a moral standard, then why would we choose to follow the standard?  For the sake of a civilized society?  It’s actually not a logical argument, because so many others will not follow ethical standards you’re putting yourself at a disadvantage.

You can make the effort to control people through external pressures, i.e. the rules of society, and some will even grow up to be moral and honorable.

However, our best hope a parents is to have our children develop their own relationship with God so their standard of behavior is from their own internal desire.

I have seen such a change in the past year in my daughter as she has made her faith more and more her own.  What a trememdous blessing.

DC