Late in every summer, our local paper prints an article about recreational hiking in the desert. Each year several hikers die of dehydration in our scenic mountains. The question the article always addresses is: How much water should be shared with a needy stranger gasping trailside from the heat?

“If it came down to having enough for myself or helping someone, I’d have to drink my own water,” a Phoenix businesswoman said most recently, adding that for her it was an ethical decision, with a bit of belief in the survival of the fittest mixed in.