There is a line from "A Death in the Family" by James Agee that says: "How far we all come. How far we all come away from ourselves. You can never go home again."

Dr. Jekyll, in novelist Robert Louis Stevenson's Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, was a respected 19th century doctor who concocted a personality-altering potion that turned him into Mr. Hyde, an out-of-control threat on the after-dark streets of London. Little by little, the evil Mr. Hyde took over, until all the good Dr. Jekyll had done was destroyed.

When I was ten, we had a bully named Billy in our neighborhood who threatened to beat up anybody who would cross his path the wrong way. Billy stood a foot taller than most of the other boys and was twice as bulky. Billy seemed to be in a bad attitude most of the time and was always seen pounding his fist into his other hand in the standard bully fashion. No one doubted his threats. Of course, it was his vague definition of “crossing him the wrong way” that created the fear that most of the kids in the neighborhood experienced.

Almost daily, we hear or read about the malfeasance of some trusted individual, whether a key employee at a business or an elected official at some level of local, state or federal government.

Around the world, many large nations are under pressure from ethnic or tribal minorities within their borders. Kosovo recently declared independence from Serbia. Kenya is torn by tribal rivalries over disputed election results. Chechnya desires freedom from Russian control. The Basque people of Spain want to be separate from Madrid's oversight.

But will any of these peoples truly be happier and better off going their own way? Will they be able to provide themselves a better government and a better life than what they are leaving behind?