Business Ethics at the Moment of McClellan

Business Ethics -- Scott McClellan

In the article, some of the blame is being put upon Scott McClellan and the other workers in America. I would like to give 2 points for thought with a comment:

1. Argue all that you want, but in America, we do what we are told to do by the boss, or we can, and some do, lose their job. That is the bottom line. Losing jobs now under the current administration is not an option. A side point to remember is that everyone in America is working for or under the Current Administration, however narrowly or broadly defined.

2. Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a great fall. This well-known fact feeds the prevailing thoughts on "Pick Your Battles Well".

A side comment is that I find it very disturbing in America that we do what we are told, or else we get the boot. Yet, when profits are down or something else is wrong, the workers, who followed orders, get laid off. The sadder side to that story is that the American workers seems to find that acceptable. Few are willing to stand up for their own rights and future, must less object to the boss. That is demonstrated in the lack of retirement pensions and now, a dwindling Social Security future.

In the game of puppets and pawns, it should be the "meek" that inherit the Earth. A General is a General of nothing without the soldiers.

Business Ethics

I believe that the emphasis on maximum profit in business has led to a growing culture of "maximization no matter what the cost." This seems to apply not only to corporate profits, but personal profits that result from corporate activity.

It seems to be time for our society to acknowledge that there are basic objective moral standards, rooted in a conscientiousness for others, and to make it a priority to teach the logic and necessity of those standards at every level of the education system.

ethics in the classroom

As a faculty member at a community college I always cover ethics in the work place as part of my pre-internship seminar. The pervasive attitude of my 40something students is "keep your head down, don't make waves." They seem to have learned early from other jobs that speaking up has serious negative consequences. I have not yet discovered a way to help them understand that they are helping create the exact environment that they dislike by staying quiet. It does not occur to them that if they do nothing, they may be the next target.

The other problem is that students, male students in particular, seem to think there are only two choices, take a public stand (often this means being aggressive) or stay quiet. Sadly, these male students have little or no understanding of more subtle ways to deal with issues. My female students know how to support one another in private and seek others to confront issues as a group rather than alone.