Aristotle && Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Weakness of the Will
But doing the right thing is not always so simple, even though few people deliberately choose to develop vicious habits. Aristotle sharply disagreed with Socrates's belief that knowing what is right always results in doing it. The great enemy of moral conduct, on Aristotle's view, is precisely the failure to behave well even on those occasions when one's deliberation has resulted in clear knowledge of what is right.
Incontinent agents suffer from a sort of weakness of the will {Gk. akrasia [akrásia]} that prevents them from carrying out actions in conformity with what they have reasoned. (Nic. Ethics VII 1) This may appear to be a simple failure of intelligence, Aristotle acknowledged, since the akratic individual seems not to draw the appropriate connection between the general moral rule and the particular case to which it applies. Somehow, the overwhelming prospect of some great pleasure seems to obscure one's perception of what is truly good. But this difficulty, Aristotle held, need not be fatal to the achievement of virtue.
Although incontinence is not heroically moral, neither is it truly vicious. Consider the difference between an incontinent person, who knows what is right and aims for it but is sometimes overcome by pleasure, and an intemperate person, who purposefully seeks excessive pleasure. Aristotle argued that the vice of intemperance is incurable because it destroys the principle of the related virtue, while incontinence is curable because respect for virtue remains. (Nic. Ethics VII 8) A clumsy archer may get better with practice, while a skilled archer who chooses not to aim for the target will not. (http://www.philosophypages.com/hy/2s.htm)

Maslow's hierarchy of needs is often depicted as a pyramid consisting of five levels: the four lower levels are grouped together as being associated with Physiological needs, while the top level is termed growth needs associated with psychological needs. Deficiency needs must be met first. Once these are met, seeking to satisfy growth needs drives personal growth. The higher needs in this hierarchy only come into focus when the lower needs in the pyramid are satisfied. Once an individual has moved upwards to the next level, needs in the lower level will no longer be prioritized. If a lower set of needs is no longer being met, the individual will temporarily re-prioritize those needs by focusing attention on the unfulfilled needs, but will not permanently regress to the lower level . For instance, a businessman (at the esteem level) who is diagnosed with cancer will spend a great deal of time concentrating on his health (physiological needs), but will continue to value his work performance (esteem needs) and will likely return to work during periods of remission. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow)

carl hiaasen

carl hiaasen seems like a very down to earth person, like someone you would find living next door. He has been married twice with two sons, one from each marriage. he has worked at the same job, the miami harold, a newspaper, since 1976. he has written many, fiction, non-fiction, and short-stories. one of his previous novels, strip tease, even became a motion picture staring demi moore and burt reynolds.

hiaasen novels and colums, the moral landscape making almost tangible certain basic and universal values: we should be loyal to our friends, be have with civility and decency, earn ourpaychecks honestly, experience shame of we stal, preserve the world for our children, and never surrender- either our belief in these valuse or to anyone who would violate them for personal gain. Hiaasen says, "you try to be a good citizen wherever you live. Plant mangroves and dont piss in the water."