09-01-2006, 08:48 PM
Religious or not, a person who only "does the right thing" out of fear of punishment is not a morally straight person at all. One needs a stronger philosophy than that to even begin entering the realm of strong character. Even the most slimy, immoral person in the world will obey the law if they feel that the risks of breaking such law is not justified by the rewards they could gain by doing so.