Although loyalty seems central to much common sense morality, it also features in a good deal of common-sense immorality. Patriotic and religious loyalties are frequently jingoistic, exclusionary and even terroristic. Even the impressive loyalty of legal professionals to their clients can appear insensitive to the public interest. Morally responsible action is action undertaken on the basis of one’s best judgement of what is appropriate. The loyalist, however, appears to give herself over to the cause or object of loyalty without any thought or consideration to whether the object’s particular expectation or demands might be justifiable.
