gambling on ethics

last excerpt from julian baggini - the pig that wants to be eaten

Mette looked into the eyes of the her estranged husband, but could find no flicker of remorse.
"you tell me you want us back," she said to him, "but how can we do that when you won't even admit that you did the wrong thing when you left me and the children?"
"because in my heart i don't think i did wrong, and i don't want to lie to you," explained Paul. "i left because i needed to get away to follow my muse. i went in the name of art. don't you remember when we used to talk about Gauguin and how he had to do the same? you always said he had done a  hard thing, but not a wrong one."
"but you are no Gauguin," signed Mette. "that's why you're back. you admit you failed."
"did Gauguin know he would succeed when he left his wife? no one can know such a thing. if he was in the right, then so was i."
"no," said Mette. "his gamble paid off, and so he turned out to be right. yours didn't, and so you turned out to be wrong."
"his gamble?" replied Paul. "are you saying luck can make the difference between right and wrong?"
Mette thought for a few moments. "yes, i suppose i am."

paul is right here. just cause gauguin became an artistic success doesn't mean that he wasn't a bad husband too. that's not to say that you shouldn't follow your dreams, because one isn't necessarily more important than the other. that's part of the trade off with public figures. most political elite and revolutionaries aren't the best spouses and parents; you only have so much time, after all. which is fine. it just depends on what your priorities are. being a success certainly makes the bitter pill of abandonment easier for your discarded family to swallow. but in no way does that make what you did right.