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Archive for July, 2008
Next Entries »How effective was the White House’s apology to Berlusconi?
Wednesday, July 9th, 2008Just imagine: you’re the President of the United States, attending the final G8 conference of your Presidential term. The cameras are flashing, hands are being shaken, it’s a fabulous opportunity to strut your “leader of the free world” stuff. Then you learn that one of your aides included in the press kit for U.S. reporters a biography that [...]
How ethical is InBev’s push to oust Anheuser-Busch’s board?
Monday, July 7th, 2008Belgian brewing company InBev, Inc. must have been mightily disappointed when the Anheuser-Busch Board of Directors of Anheuser-Busch rejected InBev’s offer to buy the American brewer, theme parks, Clydesdales, Super Bowl ads and all. The Anheuser-Busch board declined the offer on the grounds that it undervalued the company. Apparently, InBev refuses to take “no” for an [...]
How will the next President deal with Guantanamo prisoners?
Sunday, July 6th, 2008Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the prisoners in detention at Guantanamo Bay have the right under the U.S. Constitution to challenge their detention in American federal courts, we will probably see a flurry of litigation from detainees seeking release. According to NPR, the Pentagon believes that about eighty of those prisoners [...]
Happy Independence Day!
Friday, July 4th, 2008On this 4th of July, I want to write just a little about how ethics and liberty go together. Too often, people think that ethics are all about restrictions: laws, rules, regulations, codes of conduct, and so forth. They focus on how principles of ethics restrain behavior, and overlook the freedoms that ethics protect.
In my [...]
Are you afraid to talk ethics with your employees?
Thursday, July 3rd, 2008Employers can be uncomfortable talking about business ethics with their employees for a variety of reasons. Some bosses are afraid of seeming naive or too “goody-goody,” especially when dealing with cynical employees. Other bosses worry that, if they bring up ethical issues, their employees will become fearful that they’re being set up for discipline. Another [...]
Business ethics start at the top
Tuesday, July 1st, 2008Now and then, I’ll hear a company executive complain about the ethics of his or her employees. The complaints usually have to do with things like pilfering office supplies (a chronic problem just before school starts each September), wasting work time with Internet shopping or personal e-mails, or evasive encounters with customers or vendors. Larger [...]
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