Do What We Say, Not What We Do No, it is not about washing your clothes in a responsible way. Ethics Washing refers to the practice of ethical window dressing. It is where an organization gives lip service to ethics to make it seem as though it acts responsibly but... Read more →
Targeted Charitable Giving to Benefit Society I’ve been hearing a lot about “effective altruism” and decided to do some research and devote today’s blog to the topic. I was particularly struck by the use of the term in a story about Sam Bankman-Fried and the debacle at FTX. When asked... Read more →
It’s Time for Employees to Share in Corporate Profits I am not a socialist. I do not believe that the wealth of the rich should automatically be shared with the less fortunate for the betterment of society. However, the gap between executive compensation and that of the average worker has... Read more →
Should Corporations Be Encouraged to Influence the Political Process? It's well known that corporations donate to politicians of their choice. This has been going on for many years. What's not so clear is whether the concept of "woke capitalism" is ratcheting up the support in a more tangible way that... Read more →
Rules of the Road I first posted this piece on my "Workplace Ethics Advice" blog and received so many comments and inquiries that I decided to post on my "Ethics Sage" blog as well. The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution protects us from the government interfering with our speech... Read more →
Financial Information Should Be Mandated by the SEC I have previously blogged about the importance of disclosing issues related to corporate social responsibility (CSR) in the financial statements or some other form of reporting. The SEC has examined the potential economic effects of mandated disclosure and reporting standards for CSR,... Read more →
Should You Buy With Your Heart, Not With Your Wallet? Perhaps you have heard about “Ethical Consumerism”. It has various elements to it but, generally, is the practice of spending money in a way that aligns with your values. That’s the angle I like to address because it makes making... Read more →
A Cautionary Tale for Silicon Valley Fake it until you make it is an expression that amply describes what happened to Theranos. It also characterizes the actions of the company’s founder and CEO, Elizabeth Holmes. The idea being that by imitating confidence, competence, and an optimistic mindset, Holmes was able... Read more →
Analyzing the Ethical Issues of UBER’s Policy Is it ethical for UBER to charge disabled passengers a higher fee because the driver must wait until the disabled person is fully in the cab? How can we assess the ethicality of such a position taken by UBER? It’s an important issue... Read more →
The Good, the Bad, and the Worse It seems Facebook finally figured out what many of us already know, which is that Instagram could be toxic to children and, in the extreme, motivate them to commit suicide. The potential effect on a child’s wellbeing is alarming. In this blog, I... Read more →