i haven’t posted for a while because I’m on vacation. I’ll return next week with lots of opinions, and photos of lions, rhinos, and leopards.
I’m OK
September 23, 2010Is it ethical to review a friend’s book on Amazon?
September 2, 2010
If you write a review of a friend’s book on Amazon should you disclose that you’re a friend? Even though it would diminish the impact of your review?
My friend and favorite author, Leora Krygier, raised some interesting questions about the ethics of reviewing books:
“Should reviewers disclose their leanings and prejudices, and their world view? And on the other side of the coin, what about all those reviews we authors ask our friends to write on Amazon? Should ‘friend’ connections be disclosed in honest reviewing? What about blurbs that come from authors who have the same publisher? Is that a conflict of interest? And reviews for money? Do we just stack it all up to ‘it’s okay because it’s just promotion?’ or is this an ethical issue that needs addressing?”
An ethics principle that almost always works is the “clear conscience” rule: reviewers should have a clear conscience—they shouldn’t hope that their background remains hidden. If I write a review on Amazon for Leora’s book I must disclose that she’s a friend, because there’s a clear conflict here: I hope her book succeeds and I want to write an honest review. If my publisher asks me to review a colleague’s book I have a slightly different conflict: I want to stay in my publisher’s good graces and I want to be honest. If I’m being paid for a review I want to please my patron and I want to be honest.
I’m not saying that I can’t be honest in my reviews; in fact I did love and admire Leora’s novel Read the rest of this entry »
You can’t be too rich to cheat an NFL rookie: there’s no shame in the Redskins or Rams organizations
September 1, 2010
Sport teaches many important lessons. One important lesson it teaches is you can’t be so rich that you’ll pass up the chance to swindle a greenhorn, or in this case, a college football star.
The Washington Redskins and St. Louis Rams, worth $1.55 billion and $779 million respectively, according to Forbes Magazine, just pulled a neat swindle of two rookies who dreamed of NFL glory and big bucks.
Here’s how it works: the NFL has a rule that guarantees a drafted player $263,500 (that’s 85 percent of the first year minimum wage) if the team that drafted him releases him. But there’s always a way around the rule, if you don’t have Jiminy Cricket, or your mother, whispering in your ear, “Do what’s right.”
So the Rams traded linebacker Hall Davis, their fifth round draft choice, to the Redskins for tight end Dennis Morris (pictured), the Redskins sixth round choice. The Redskins cut Davis after one practice; the Rams apparently plan to cut Morris later this week.
So apparently you can cut each other’s draftees and not have to pay. Shades of the Hitchcock thriller, Strangers on a Train.
Thanks to ESPN, who unearthed this story. They report that the NFL is investigating.
We are tarred by what we put up with: “Death to all Palestinians”? Not my view, says Netanyahu
August 29, 2010
We honor politicians who denounce members of their party or of their administration who lie, cheat, steal, or defame. Those who defend such behavior—or are silent about it—are encouraging it and eventually own it as their own. Some try to have it both ways—gently stepping away from the crime without offending the criminal. Like Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu?
Israel’s Haaretz newspaper reports today that Ovadia Yosef, formerly chief rabbi of Israel, called yesterday during his weekly Shabbat sermon, for death to all Palestinians. Rabbi Yosef, spiritual leader and a founder of Israel’s leading ultra-Orthodox Shas Party—part of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s governing coalition with four ministers—described Palestinians as evil, bitter enemies of Israel:
“Abu Mazen [more commonly known as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas] and all these evil people should perish from this world … God should strike them with a plague, them and these Palestinians.”
Nothing new for Rabbi Yosef. Haaretz also quotes a 2001 speech in which he proclaimed,
“It is forbidden to be merciful to them. You must send missiles to them and annihilate them. They are evil and damnable.”
When asked for a comment yesterday, Netanyahu’s office fell despicably short of condemnation, issuing a statement, according to the Jerusalem Post, that Yosef’s comments:
“don’t represent the views of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu or the Israeli government. Israel entered into negotiations out of a desire to progress with the Palestinians toward an agreement that will end the conflict and ensure peace, security, and good neighborly relations between the two nations.”
The ethics of Sarah Palin…or of being on the same planet as Sarah Palin or of choosing her as a running mate
August 27, 2010
It’s often hard to distinguish between Fox News commentator Sarah Palin and comedian Tina Fey. I try to distinguish because Fey is supposed to be funny and Palin is not. Palin is now seriously arguing that real Americans won’t have any truck with Democrats, or collaborate in any way in governing.
She ripped Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown when asked on Fox Business network whether Brown should be on notice for siding with Democrats on the financial reform bill. She explained that real Americans wouldn’t stand for that, but Massachusetts was, perhaps, different.
“Perhaps they’re not going to look for such a hard-core constitutional conservative there, and they’re going to put up with Scott Brown and some of the antics there. But up here in Alaska, and so many places in the U.S. where we have a pioneering, independent spirit, and we have an expectation that our representatives in D.C. will respect the will of the people and the intelligence of the people. Well, up here, we wouldn’t stand for that.”
It’s difficult to decide whether Palin is unethical or just moronic. I don’t think she’s moronic—she couldn’t have gotten elected governor or made some sensible comments if she were a moron. Rather she’s a mixture of uninformed and hostile to the very idea of government actually governing. So I suppose that leaves unethical. The one thing I’m certain of is that John McCain was profoundly unethical when he picked such an unqualified running mate.
Ann Coulter strikes a blow for civility. (Of all people!)
August 25, 2010
Ethics Bob doesn’t often get a chance to speak up for Ann Coulter and Mitch McConnell, but here goes.
On Meet the Press Sunday, host David Gregory was exploring the implications of the Pew poll that showed that thirty-one percent of Republicans polled think that President Obama is a Muslim. Here’s his exchange with Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-KY), the Senate minority leader:
MR. GREGORY: As a leader of the country, sir, as one of the most powerful Republicans in the country, do you think you have an obligation to say to 34 percent of Republicans in the country–rather, 31 percent who believe the president of the United States is a Muslim? That’s misinformation.
SEN. McCONNELL: The president says he’s a–the president says he’s a Christian, I take him at his word. I don’t think that’s in dispute.
MR. GREGORY: And do you think–how, how do you think it comes to be that this kind of misinformation gets spread around and prevails?
SEN. McCONNELL: I have no idea, but I take the president at his word.
The liberal media went bananas. Chris Matthews dedicated his entire Hardball show to McConnell’s words, saying. “I take him at his word,” was a “pitch-perfect dog whistle to the haters.” Matthew’s guest, Howard Fineman of Newsweek, pitched in, helpfully explaining that in McConnell’s Kentucky “the nativist appeal outside of Louisville really works Read the rest of this entry »
Open Season on Muslims? Here in America? Read on.
August 23, 2010
Racial and religious prejudice and defamation will always be with us, although they are growing less acceptable socially. Call someone a nigger or dago or spic or kike and you’re out of the game. Write about how Jews control the banks and the media, or how the Civil Rights Act of 1964 has destroyed our schools and nice people will come down hard on you. But these same nice people have no such compunctions about spreading hateful misinformation about Muslims.
I got such an email just this morning, from a very nice person. It’s subject line was “Life is a Journey, Not a guided tour,” and it forwarded something called “Jihad watch, Islam Explained in Layman’s terms.”
I’m uncomfortable repeating the vile race-hatred but people need to see what’s circulating virally on the internet and through our society. So here are some of the “explanations,” quotes truncated but—I promise—all in context:
- “Islam is not a religion, nor is it a cult. In its fullest form, it is a complete, total, 100% system of life. Islam has religious, legal, political, economic, social, and military components. The religious component is a beard for all of the other components…
- “Islamization begins when there are sufficient Muslims in a country to agitate for their religious privileges…
- “As long as the Muslim population remains around or under 2% in any given country, they will be for the most part be regarded as a peace-loving minority…
- “At 2% to 5%, they begin to proselytize from other ethnic minorities and disaffected groups, often with major recruiting from the jails and Read the rest of this entry »
Muslim worker says Disneyland discriminates by banning her head scarf
August 22, 2010
Imane Boudlal, a 26-year old Muslim woman is free to wear a head scarf. The U.S. Constitution says so. Disneyland can’t discriminate against Ms Boudlal because of her religion. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 says so.
Ms. Boudlal works as a hostess at Disneyland’s Grand Californian Hotel, where employees are called “cast members.” She has worn Disney’s prescribed uniform for over two years, but has asked permission to wear a head scarf. Management told her they would try to get a Disney-appropriate headscarf, but seemed to be dragging their feet.
Ms. Boudlal ran out of patience after a couple of months and showed up for work Sunday wearing a hijab. She was told to either remove it or work out of the customers’ sight. She refused and was sent home—four times. Now she’s suing Disney.
Disney spokeswoman Suzi Brown said Disney has a policy not to discriminate. She said that Boudlal may work with the head covering away from customers while Disneyland tries to find a compromise that would allow her to cover her head in a way that fits with her hostess uniform.
“Typically, somebody in an on-stage position like hers wouldn’t wear something like that, that’s not part of the costume. We were trying to accommodate her Read the rest of this entry »
President Obama, time to do the right thing about the mosque near Ground Zero
August 18, 2010
Some days ethics backs you into a corner. You have to choose between doing what your inner voice is saying is right—or not. That day is here for President Obama.
He made a stirring statement about religious freedom last Friday at a Ramadan dinner. The next day he equivocated: “I was not commenting and I will not comment on the wisdom of making the decision to put a mosque there. I was commenting very specifically on the right people have that dates back to our founding. That’s what our country is about.”
Score a miss for Presidential leadership. His conflicting statements poured fuel on the burning controversy.
· Americans generally believe Muslims have a right to worship, just not there.
· One and one-half billion Muslims thought America was a land of religious freedom, not at war with Islam, but aren’t certain.
· Manhattanites mostly think people ought to be able to do whatever they want.
· Families of 9/11 victims are divided
You can’t please everybody, Mr. President. Time to do the right thing. But what is the right thing? Should a Muslim community center-cum-prayer area be built on the site of a decrepit ex-Burlington Coat Factory, hard by an Off-Track Betting parlor, a bar, a porn shop, and some run-down office buildings 2-1/2 blocks from Ground Zero?
The opponents say it’s a matter of respecting sensitivities of people who lost loved ones on 9/11. Read the rest of this entry »
Dr. Laura Schlessinger teaches us how to apologize
August 17, 2010
Dr. Laura Schlessinger is ending her radio show at the end of the year, nudged along by the furor over her repeated use of the “n-word” in a conversation with a caller. Dr. Laura repeated the word six or seven times, not in a racist way, but in a complaint about a double standard whereby black comics can use it ad nauseum, but it’s off limits to whites.
In the conversation Dr. Laura spoke disrespectfully and hurtfully to the caller, who, after all, called in for some consoling and advice. The next day Dr. Laura taught us all a lesson about apologizing. Not a Category 1 (defiant) apology: “I’m sorry if you think I did something wrong.” Not a Category 2 (evasive) apology: “I may have made an innocent mistake, and I’m sorry for it—if I actually did it.”
No, Dr. Laura issued an all-out Category 3 apology that’s so rare in public life:
“I talk every day about doing the right thing. And yesterday, I did the wrong thing. I didn’t intend to hurt people, but I did. And that makes it the wrong thing to have done.
“I was attempting to make a philosophical point, and I articulated the “n” word all the way out – more than one time. And that was wrong. I’ll say it again – that was wrong. Read the rest of this entry »
Ethics Bob 