[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by kazbates

The bottom line: Treat people the way you want them to treat you. It's really very simple.

Originally Posted by kennyc

Ye ol' Golden Rule!

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

Which is found in some form in most of our modern religions, and even many secular philosophies. ...And in my opinion, it's a great rule for everyone to follow.

Originally Posted by ardeegee

http://www.religioustolerance.org/reciproc2.htm

The flaw in the rule being, of course, the assumption that others want the same things that you do.

Yes, but as a general maxim, it's hard to beat, and as your link shows, it transcends cultures and has withstood the test of time.

Another link on that sight focuses more on philosophers and others who have given us some form of the Golden Rule. I can't be sure if all of these quotes are accurate, however, because they don't reference the original sources; but I've long felt that Kant's Categorical Imperative can be reduced to a clever re-phrasing of the Golden Rule.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/reciproc3.htm

To be sure, there are probably exceptions for every rule, and entire books could be written on all the nuances and situational modifications that a thoughtful moral agent would do well to take into consideration in its application; but for a summation of ethical behavior that's easily understood and fits on a t-shirt, IMO the Golden Rule is without peer.