Michael Schur

I have been a television comedy writer for almost 25 years.

I have written sketches and animated shows and sitcoms, but for the last decade, my real passion has been the study of ethics.

It's a classic cautionary tale, right?

You move to Hollywood, you get seduced by the bright lights and the fast cars, and before you know it, you're reading 18th-century German philosophy.

I've always been an intense rule follower.

When I was in kindergarten, our teacher would tell everyone to line up, and I would immediately line up, and then I would look at all the other kids who were still goofing off, and I would think, what are they doing?

Did they not hear her?

She said to line up.

I rinsed my mouth with mouthwash for at least 30 seconds every night because on the label, it says, use for 30 seconds.

I know, I'm irritated by me too.

But the real reason that I became interested in ethics is because in 2005, I royally and epically screwed something up.

So, 2005, my wife JJ, driving along in slow-moving traffic, bumps into the guy in front of her.

The police officer looks everything over, doesn't see any damage, they exchange numbers and they go on their way.

A couple of days later, we get a notice that the guy wants $836 because, according to him, the entire fender needs to be replaced.

This is happening during Hurricane Katrina.

JJ and I had just been to New Orleans on a trip.

We had really fallen in love with this beautiful city, which was now literally underwater.

I was very riled up.

This was hitting me really hard.

So I went and I looked at the guy's car, and if I got very close and I strained my eyes, I could just barely see this little line on the crease.