Tag: morality-and-ethics

Caitlin Clark is Not a Bitch

On By southwerkIn business ethics1 Comment

https://sports.yahoo.com/opinion-caitlin-clark-not-problem-191203201.html

I am not a sports person. Generally speaking I have no idea what any team is doing anywhere at any time. Caitlin Clark makes it onto my radar because she is an emblem of change, the maturation of women’s sports and the ability of women to be well paid sports stars coming to fruition. I believe it is a good thing, a very important milestone in human history.

Currently we have an insult hurled casually at this symbol of women’s advancement. The phrase in question is “A White Bitch.” Pat McAfee went there. He has since sort of, kind of, maybe apologized. I am very unimpressed. In the course of being on television and being a commentator, there is always the possibility of saying the wrong thing. It’s a fast medium that revels in word play. So, I expect the foolish and irresponsible to be said from time to time with the provision in mind that ladies and gentlemen can err but must take responsibility for their mistakes and learn from them.

McAfee should sincerely apologize. He was wrong.

I have to say that we are in new territory here. I was a very young man when people like Muhammed Ali shot across the sky of sports and changed everything. There was a massive amount of controversy in that era and he was just one of many trailblazers in sports. This is a similar situation. Boundaries are being adjusted and the world is changing before our eyes. For many people, this is difficult.

It is a good thing but the ancient customs of civility and kindness must hold. We are not savages. We cannot and must not say whatever we feel for we are not children. We should say what is appropriate and kind with the intent of bettering and adding to what is known. That is true commentary.

Sports commentary should add to our understanding, not pretend to be shock jocks on talk radio. This is multi-billion dollar industry with many, many implications for our larger culture and in particular how we raise and nurture children. “A White Bitch” is not a phrase we should casually throw out for its momentary shock value. We have a better culture than that.

James Alan Pilant

A Very Bad Neighbor or When Fire Chiefs Go Wrong

On By southwerkIn business ethics
The wrong way to deal with neighbor.
New Jersey fire chief vandalizes neighbor’s rare car with rocks — and it was caught on video

Business ethics demands that a human being behave as a person of reason not subject to outbursts of rage or radical responses. This act caught on camera, a very foolish act, is a failure of behavior and judgment. It is also a moral and ethical failure for which there must be penalties. As of the current date I am writing this, charges have been filed and I suspect there will be a civil suit as well.

We live in a civil society. We have an opportunity every day to reject the law of the jungle and live as brothers and sisters, joint citizens of a nation and a community.

Disputes don’t have to escalate to violence or the destruction of property. I taught for many years. One of my subjects was business law. I told a story of a very large company. They had a minor dispute over the boundary line between a huge factory and a home owner. The leadership of the company handed the problem off to the legal department who filed a lawsuit. I explained that was probably going to happen every single time you handed the problem off to legal. Let me explain.

“What should you have done in the CEO’s position?” I asked. And then I had to explain because they thought what was done was okay. “How about simply asking the neighbor, the home owner, if the problem could be settled by an agreement?” Now, maybe it couldn’t and we wind up in court anyway. But I believe most of the time that minor property disputes should remain minor disputes and not major legal cases that can last for years and cost a lot of money. Besides, why not act as a good neighbor and in fact, be a good neighbor. We don’t have to go to war over every dispute.

The man above did not act as a good neighbor. The acts we see on camera are those of a pathetic fool. I bet he thinks of himself as an “alpha” male and had a lot of laughs with his buddies over the thousands of dollars worth of damages he did to the neighbor’s car. Just another bully. They are a dime a dozen, strutting their pretend machismo. We see a lot of them these days.

There is a better way. Be a good neighbor. Behave as a good member of your religion if you have one. But above all remember you have a duty to act as a lady or a gentleman is all circumstances.

James Alan Pilant

Another Example of the Cruelty Being the Point

On By southwerkIn business ethics

https://www.yahoo.com/news/critics-slam-ex-trump-wh-053453611.html

https://www.yahoo.com/news/ex-trump-aide-slammed-evil-142918279.html

An example of a man admitting committing a crime. Most unusual.

Recently some Republicans have been making news by denying children food benefits, rolling back child labor laws, killing their pet (more on this later) and just general cruelty. Apparently in the strange world of Republican politics the more mean and cruel an act is – the more political points it is worth.

Today’s example of cruelty just for points come from a fellow named John McEntee, who has posted a video of himself bragging about his acts of cruelty. Let me quote from the first article referenced above:

“So I always keep this fake Hollywood money in my car so when a homeless person asks for money, then I give him like a fake $5 bill, so I feel good about myself, they feel good,” said McEntee in a clip with the caption “Just a joke. Everyone calm down #fyp.” “And then, when they go to use it, they get arrested so I’m actually like helping clean up the community. You know, getting them off the street.”

You may note that Mr. McEntee says this is just a joke, and everyone should calm down. I write about ethics and morality and I am not calming down. Apparently he thinks that passing counterfeit money is funny, that homelessness is funny, that abusing homeless people is funny and that jailing homeless people is funny. Based on this video, I do not believe that the world of comedy has found any talent here.

Generally awful people doing awful things keep their acts to themselves and wisely so. Back when I was teaching college I warned my students the people broadcast who they were all the time, and that when someone admits or even worse brags about their evil or foolish acts, you should believe them. McEntee says it is just a joke. Really?

From the second article above:

Under federal statute 18 section 471, it is a federal crime to intently “defraud, falsely makes, forges, counterfeits, or alters any obligation or other security of the United States”. That includes currency, treasury notes, reserve notes and more.

So, what do you think? Is this crime funny? Did you laugh or are you like me appalled at this pitiful disgusting conduct?

James Alan Pilant

Not By Bread Alone

On By southwerkIn business ethics

Sometimes reading and watching our various media, you get the impression that economic success is the ultimate determination of a nation’s success. This is the popular view in many circles. But if true at all, it is only partially true. The fact of the matter is – nations have value based not just on economic value but on art, culture and their civic life. It is better to live with a vibrant culture, movies, plays and books, – and better still to live in a society where the citizens can participate in the decisions that effect their lives.

Many participate in art. Some draw, some play an instrument, some participate in little theatre. But once in a while a person rises to the level of director, a professional artist. Successful societies run by the wise, experienced and based on a civilized tradition honor the great artists among us. But primitive and repressive societies do not.

There is no clearer indication of a society in decline than its attempt to destroy a human being for making art.

And here we have just such an example.

James Alan Pilant

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/acclaimed-iranian-filmmaker-flees-europe-210242828.html

Taken directly from the article above:

Rasoulof condemned the Iranian government in an Instagram post on Monday, calling it a tyrannical and oppressive regime, and posting a video that showed him crossing the country’s mountainous border. “If geographical Iran suffers beneath the boots of your religious tyranny, cultural Iran is alive in the common minds of millions of Iranians who were forced to leave Iran due to your brutality and no power can impose its will on it. From today, I am a resident of cultural Iran,” he said.

Beauty Pageants Gone Wrong?!

On By southwerkIn business ethics

https://www.yahoo.com/news/miss-usa-resignation-letter-accuses-022815409.html

Something is terribly wrong here when two winners resign angrily and publicly. I did a simple internet search on the phrase “beauty pageant corruption” and got more than a hundred thousand hits. These contests disturb me. My ethical instincts perk up and I have to wonder about all the possibilities of cheating, manipulation, sharp practice and the dark influence of our monied elites.

One of the things that concerns me is that the pageants required the winners to sign non-disclosure agreements. If this is such a great honor and this is supposed to be bringing out the best and the greatest of our young women, why do you need an NDA? What’s going on here?

From the article above from Yahoo News:

“There is a toxic work environment within the Miss USA organization that, at best, is poor management and, at worst, is bullying and harassment,” Noelia Voigt wrote in the letter. “This started soon after winning the title of Miss USA 2023.” Voigt announced Monday on Instagram that she was relinquishing her crown, citing her mental health. Two days later, Miss Teen USA UmaSofia Srivastava, 17, announced she was also stepping down in a statement that said her “personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization.” Fans who were shocked by the unprecedented resignations noticed that the first letter in every sentence of Voigt’s online statement spelled out “I am silenced.”

With the non-disclosure agreements in place, it will be difficult to find out any details. I think the federal government and the states need to step up oversight. I want you to know that NDA’s are a serious impediment to constructive change and the processes of democracy. They offer large organizations and individuals the “right” to mistreat employees and clients. I do not believe they should be legal in our society or any other society.

How do we as a society, as a nation, as a people, solve problems when we can’t find out what is happening or has happened because of NDA’s?

My impression based on the little information provided is that these pageants exploit women probably cruelly. There should be an investigation and there should be legal consequences for wrong doing.

James Alan Pilant

It is very, very simple. These Individuals are Criminals.

On By southwerkIn business ethics

https://www.yahoo.com/news/man-bragged-fed-officer-mob-163846410.html

Jack Wade Whitton, Capital Rioter

I write about ethics and morality. When you write about basic right and wrong, words are important. And in the case above the words are very important, indeed.

From the article:

“Whitton looked for opportunities to attack: In his three documented assaults, he was either a leader or a solitary actor,” prosecutors wrote in a court filing. Videos show that contemporaneous attacks on police by Whitton and a co-defendant, Justin Jersey, “ignited the rageful onslaught of violence that followed” on the Lower West Terrace, prosecutors said. “As Whitton and Jersey commenced their assaults, the tenor of the crowd audibly changed,” they wrote. “Other rioters surged towards the Archway and joined the attack, throwing objects at the officers and striking at them with makeshift weapons such as a hockey stick, a pieces of wood, a flagpole, and a police riot shield.”

This was a very active member of a riot, we see words and phrases like “attack,” “rageful onslaught,” “throwing objects,” and there are some more. There were terrible acts that resulted in harm to policemen. And this particular individual has been sentenced for these crimes.

So, now you are asking (and you should), “James, where is your ethical issue? Why are we talking about this?”

To my disgust and astonishment, individuals like this fellow just sentenced have been described without any attempt at satire or irony as “hostages” and “political prisoners.”

No, these are criminals.

They were members of a violent mob hell bent on stopping the certification of 2020 election. That and the associated acts of violence and vandalism are all crimes.

These criminals deserve the penalties of the law that they broke. Period.

James Alan Pilant