Need to write to 7 Discussion

Case: The Ring of Gyges

What would you do with the power of invisibility? Would you spy on your favorite celebrity, pull pranks, or sneak into movies? Would you rob banks, harm your enemies, or commit murder? Where would it end? In this discussion, you will explore ideas of ethical self-governance and the responsibility of leaders. These are considerations you can apply in your future career should you ever find yourself in a position with unchecked power.

To complete this discussion, first, read pages 3–6 in The Ring of Gyges, then, for your initial post, address all of the following questions in 1–2 sentences each:

What would you do if you had the ring?

What do you think most people would do with the ring?

What criteria would you use to determine ethical and unethical uses for the ring? How would you control your own behavior with the knowledge that you can’t get caught and there would be no lawful consequences?

It could be said that leaders today have the power of the ring to hide information from the public. Is this a good or bad thing? Why?

Case: Parable of the Sadhu

In life or death situations, people rarely think about leadership or the ethical consequences of their decisions, such as whether the ethics of self-interest are as valid as the ethics of altruism, or how context affects our decision making. While most of the decisions we make at work do not have life/death implications, we are often faced with unexpected ethical dilemmas. Do you have a contingency plan to deal with them? These are the concepts you will consider with your peers in this discussion.

To complete this discussion, first read Parable of the Sadhu; then, for your initial post, address the following:

Explain whether you think McCoy did anything wrong. If so, what and why? If not, defend your argument.

Consider what can be said in McCoy’s defense. Describe how you could construct a defense of his actions and argue he either did the right thing or at least did nothing bad?

If this had been on a busy city sidewalk instead of on the top of the mountain, do you think McCoy’s decisions would be different? Why or why not?

How would leadership have made a difference in this situation?

Case: The Only God You’ll Ever See

Have you ever wondered how people get involved with cults? What makes them want to give up their worldly possessions and worship one person or cause? How do charismatic individuals wield such incredible power? Charismatic individuals such as Jim Jones or Adolph Hitler aren’t just found in cults or politics, however. Many successful leaders use charisma in their organizations to make extraordinary and positive things happen. 

To complete this discussion, first, read pages 153–173 of The Only God You’ll Ever See. Then, for your initial post, address the following:

What is it about Jones’s leadership that inspired so much devotion?

Why did his closest followers hide the truth of Jones’s perverse behaviors from the rest of his followers? 

How can a culture, particular historical conditions, or human nature make people more prone to desire and follow charismatic leaders? Support your position with an example from history or current events.

What would the conditions need to be for you to be influenced by a strong charismatic personality?

In your opinion, is charisma an inherent trait, or is it a set of behaviors that leaders can practice and develop?

Case: The Bathsheba Syndrome

Have you ever wondered why people, such as General Petraeus and Harvey Weinstein, who have made it to the top stumble and fall? Were they bad people all along, or did a perfect storm of interacting variables lead to their downfall? How can we prevent leaders at the top of organizations from engaging in unethical acts and bringing the rest down with them?

To complete this discussion, first, read The Bathsheba Syndrome: The Ethical Failure of Successful Leaders. Then, for your initial post, address the following:

If virtue or good character is, as Aristotle says, a good habit, then what happened to King David?

When we select leaders, how is it possible to tell which ones are likely to fall prey to the Bathsheba Syndrome?

In Module 2, you explored the idea of unchecked power in the Ring of Gyges. How is this different? Would you have acted the same in King David’s position?

Case: Corneas in the Congo

Sometimes leaders find themselves in a position of choosing between one’s personal morality and one’s ethical duty to an organization. Is what seems to be the obvious right choice always what is actually best for an organization? How can helping people actually be the wrong thing to do? For example: Is the greatest good to provide eyesight to those who have lost it and in the process wind up losing a truck and medical supplies, or is the greatest good to protect an organization from possible scandal if the word gets out that corneas were taken from Chinese prisoners? You will consider questions like these and more in this discussion.

First, review the case, Corneas in the Congo, in the following excerpt from, The Ethics of Leadership (Ciulla, 2003, p. 14):

You are the head of a small aid agency in the Congo. The mission of your agency is to provide health services for refugees who have fled the various civil wars in the region. In recent years you have worked with a number of nongovernmental organization agencies, such as C.A.R.E., Doctors Without Borders, and the Christian Children’s Fund. Your agency focuses on giving intensive help to small communities. You are now working in a camp of fifty people. Because of a peculiar parasite in the water that destroys the cornea of the eye, ten people in the camp have gone blind; half of them are children. Except for their inability to see, their health is reasonably good, given the conditions of the camp.

You contact Doctors Without Borders and they tell you that they will have two ophthalmologists in the area next week, but that the only thing they can do for the people who have gone blind is to give them cornea transplants. They could do the operations, but they said it was impossible to get corneas for transplant in Africa.

A few days later, the area director of Doctors Without Borders calls and tells you that a Chinese aid agency has twenty corneas and would be willing to exchange them for a truck and ten cases of medical supplies. This strikes you as odd so you ask, “Where did they get the corneas?” She then tells you that the corneas were donated to the Chinese aid agency by a wealthy Hong Kong businessman. He bought them from a middle man who buys body parts for transplant from prisons. The prisons carefully execute criminals and then take out livers and corneas for resale. Evidently, corrupt prison wardens make huge profits from this practice. This makes them very liberal with executions, especially of political prisoners. 

You tell the director that the origin of these Chinese corneas makes you uncomfortable. The director says, “We have no problem with using them. If you don’t want them, I’ll give them to someone else. There are too many people in need here.” She says, “You have one day to decide. Tomorrow I have to radio the plane in Kinshasa and tell it where to go next.”

Ciulla, J. B. (2003). The ethics of leadership. South Melbourne, Australia; Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth. ISBN: 9780155063174. For your initial post in the discussion board, address the following:

Is it wrong to take corneas from Chinese prisoners? Why or why not? Describe what principles are important to you in making this decision.

As the case suggests, imagine you are a leader in this situation, what are your duties and who are the stakeholders in the case?

What are the long-term ramifications of your decision?

Does your “gut feeling” about this case differ from what you think is right? If so, which would be your guide?

Case: Those Who Walk Away from Omelas

Would you compromise your morals to live in paradise? Are our ethical paradigms superior to those of other cultures? Have you ever considered that the ethics you’ve been taught all of your life might be wrong?

To complete this discussion, first, read Those Who Walk Away from Omelas. Then, for your initial post, address the following:

Would you help the child walk away, or stay? Why?

What are the ethical issues? 

Who is the most unethical in the story (if anyone)? 

Do you find any implied criticism of our own society? 

Is the life of a human a fair price for utopia?