The Truth about Hypocrisy   FORMER U.S. VICE PRESIDENT Al Gore
urges us all to reduce our carbon footprint, yet he regularly
flies in a private jet. Former drug czar William Bennett extols
the importance of temperance but is reported to be a habitual
gambler. Pastor Ted Haggard preached the virtues of “the clean
life” until allegations of methamphetamine use and a taste for
male prostitutes arose. Eliot Spitzer prosecuted prostitution
rings as attorney general in New York State, but he was later
found to be a regular client of one such ring.  These notorious
accusations against public figures all involve hypocrisy, in
which an individual fails to live according to the precepts he
or she seeks to impose on others. Charges of hypocrisy are
common in debates because they are highly effective: we feel
compelled to ­reject the views of hypocrites. But although we
see hypocrisy as a vice and a symptom of incompetence or
insincerity, we should be exceedingly careful about letting our
emotions color our judgments of