Masons must go beyond "squeaking," complaining, about society today and actually do something to improve it.

Wheels have much to teach us. They make burdens lighter and movement easier. They help bring people together. They rushed our mothers to the hospital, and they will lower us into the grave. Clad with fireworks, they spin to celebrate the 4th of July. They help to form such utilitarian objects as pottery and such ornaments as faceted and polished gems. And when something goes wrong, they squeak.

When Masons live like Masons, we are like the wheel. We make burdens lighter for others, we bridge gaps and help bring people together, we celebrate birth and give reverent burial to our dead, we proclaim patriotism and honor public service, we help with the simple cares of daily life and assist the needy, and we support both charitable institutions and rituals which are ornaments of human compassion and caring.

But we fall a little short when it comes to squeaking. We are proud of the fact that Masons stand for things and that one of the things for which we stand most firmly is ethics and its cousin, morality. We shake our heads over the ethics and morality of contemporary society. When national figures break every rule of human decency and self-respect and the national reaction is a disinterested ho-hum; when executives of international business concerns are expected to be dishonest; when schools find that many children make no attempt to distinguish between right and wrong and operate only on "I want" and "I don't want," then we need to do more than shake our heads in disapproval. Things have gone wrong—we need to squeak!

The question is how to squeak, complain, effectively. Preaching doesn't work. It takes action. The first action is, of course, to make certain that we hold ourselves to the highest standards of ethics and morality. It does little good to take a stand in favor of morality while underpaying workers or telling jokes which attack another's race or gender or lack of intelligence or national origin.

Second, we can support ethics visibly. In Oklahoma, the Masonic Fraternity gives an annual "Award for Ethics" to professionals who have demonstrated outstanding ethical activity. We plan to expand the program. But the simple fact that such an award is given and given with publicity rewards the individual, raises public awareness of ethical behavior, and presents Freemasonry as what it is, a strong advocate of sound moral values. Lodges can do the same thing in their own communities.

Lodges can also sponsor contests in local schools. Essay contests in which the students explore such questions as "What makes something the right thing to do?" or "How do I choose?" are possibilities. Another program would be to hold panel discussions in the schools, with a professional facilitator and students as panelists, to explore the answers to an ethical dilemma—something along the lines of the PBS series Ethics in America.

A little creative thought will suggest other answers and approaches. But the point is we must actually do something. It may make us feel good and self-righteous to stand aside and disapprove. But if we want to change things, we'd best start doing some inspired squeaking.

Joe R. Manning, Jr. is a Past Grand Sovereign of the Red Cross of Constantine; a Past Grand Master and Past Grand Secretary of the International Order of DeMolay; and a member of the S.G.I.G.'s Advisory Conference for the Valley of Guthrie, Oklahoma. He served as Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Oklahoma in 1985. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Oklahoma State University and a Juris Doctorate from the College of Law at the University of Oklahoma. Presently, he is Business Manager of the Masonic Charity Foundation of Oklahoma.