A radio news series about honesty in America talked about excuses. The commentator said that people use three types of excuses when guilty of wrongdoing.

• The first is outright denial—a rejection of any involvement. Sometimes this is done even though the person is obviously guilty.
• The second is the “It’s not my fault” excuse. The person looks around for someone he can blame. (Often it is a loved one - a husband or wife or parent. Sometimes it’s the boss.)
• A third form of excuse is the “I did it, but “ approach. In this instance the person blames circumstances for his shortcoming. Either he’s been struggling with some illness or the assignment wasn’t clear or the car’s been giving him trouble.

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