M7 (Wade)

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Find an alternative/opposing point of view to Climate Change as proposed in the Introduction.

An article I found that has an opposing view of Climate Change is The Distributional Impact of Climate Change on Rich and Poor Countries. One benefit of climate change is improved agriculture in some high latitude regions. Carbon dioxide, through fertilization, is strictly beneficial and helps forestry and especially agriculture in all regions (Mendelsohn, 2017). It is difficult to find opposing views on Climate Change because most of the impacts negatively affect the environment.

What obligations do we have to future generations?  

I believe we owe it to our future generations to protect the environment. According to Shaw, more than 131.8 million people, roughly 42% of the population – live where the air is often dangerous to breathe. Future generations will be born into a world where air pollution is especially harmful to young children, whose lungs are still developing. Obligations we have to future generations are clean air to breathe, safe drinking water, food without chemicals or pesticides, an environment without pollution and inhumane animal treatment. Future generations deserve a world that is better than the condition it is in today.

Does nature have value in itself?

Nature gives life to humans, animals, plants, bacteria, and many more species. Nature has always provided us with food, water, oxygen, and materials. Only in the past few centuries has man started to produce things not found in nature, but nature is still the great nurturer, even if we have lost our connection or appreciation of it. The Earth also offers us many other gifts, such as music that comes from birds, inspiration, spirituality, and beauty. Nature has value in itself as many of these gifts are given to us freely.

Who should pay the cost for protecting the environment?

Those who are responsible for causing the pollution should definitely be the ones who should pay for the cost for protecting the environment and restoring the land, sea, and air as it was originally left before their cause of destruction. While companies should pay for their pollution, I also believe most humans have contributed to polluting our home. We should take action to recycle, use more renewable energy, or take part in some way or form to prevent further pollution and to restore Earth’s natural habitat.  

References:

Mendelsohn, R., Dinar, A., & Williams, L. (2017). The distributional impact of climate change on rich and poor countries. Distributional Effects of Environmental and Energy Policy,467-486. doi:10.4324/9781315257570-21

 

M6 (Wade)

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Kenneth L. Layand and   Jeffrey K. Skilling, the chief executives who guided Enron through its spectacular rise and even more stunning fall, were found guilty on May 25, 2006, of fraud and conspiracy (Barrionuevo, 2006). The Enron Corporation was an American Energy, economic goods, and services company based in Houston, Texas. Enron was founded in 1985 as a combination of InterNorth and Houston Natural Gas. Fortune, an American multinational business magazine, named Enron “America’s Most Innovative Company’ for six consecutive years. At Enron’s peak, its shares were worth $90.75; when the firm declared bankruptcy on December 2, 2001, the company was trading at $0.26 (Segal, 2019). Enron’s leadership mislead regulators with fake holdings and off-the-books accounting practices. The once most innovative company used special purpose vehicles (SPVs), or special purpose entities (SPEs), to conceal its enormous debt and toxic assets from creditors and investors. Also, the firm was found to be guilty of obstructing justice for shredding Enron’s financial documents to conceal them from the SEC. Due to the Enron scandal, in July 2002, President George W. Bush signed into law the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The Act intensified the consequences for altering, destroying, or fabricating financial statements, and for trying to defraud shareholders.

 

Link:

https://www.investopedia.com/updates/enron-scandal-summary/

https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/25/business/25cnd-enron.html

 

References:

Barrionuevo, A. (2006, May 25). Enron Chiefs Guilty of Fraud and Conspiracy. Retrieved June 28, 2019, from https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/25/business/25cnd-enron.html

Segal, T. (2019, May 29). Enron Scandal: The Fall of a Wall Street Darling. Retrieved June 28, 2019, from https://www.investopedia.com/updates/enron-scandal-summary/

M2 ( Wade)

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Last summer I was at a grocery buying a few snacks. As I was walking to the exit, the cashier that rang me up ran quickly to me and gave me the Razzles candy that I purchased. He said he must have forgotten to put them in the bag. I said thank you, as the cashier hurried back to help customers. As I looked inside my paper bag, I saw that my Razzles were in fact there and the one I had in my hand was not purchased for. I quickly walked back to the same cashier and got in line again. I explained that he did put the candy I purchased in the bag and that I wanted to buy the packet of Razzles that he handed to me. I could have walked out of the store with two packets of Razzles and called it my lucky day, but inside me, I knew that was not the right thing to do. I felt a sense of happiness knowing that the cashier wanted to return something to me that he thought I left behind and had paid for. I hope going back to purchase the item gave the cashier a sense of happiness in someone doing the right thing.

Kant’s theory is an individual’s measure of their ethics based on goodwill and using the categorical imperative (Shaw, 2017). Kant held that only when we act from duty does our action have moral worth. Goodwill is the only thing that is good in itself. The categorical imperative describes that we should always act in such a way that we can will the maxim of our action to a universal law. My action of going back and purchasing what the cashier thought he forgot to bag, is an act Kant’s categorical imperative theory.

 

Shaw, William H.. Business Ethics: A Textbook with Cases Cengage Learning.

M1 (Wade)

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Ethics can be developed in several methods, ranging from childhood upbringing, religious beliefs, cultural values, and consciousness or the gut feeling of what is right from what is wrong. Ethics is developed during childhood from one’s upbringing. Parents teach their children their own ethical morals through their use of words, and importantly in their actions. Parents tell us right from wrong and discipline their children through the use of their words and or actions. A person can also develop their ethics through religion and religious beliefs. Shaw states that “any religion provides its believers with a worldview, part of which involves certain moral instructions, values, and commitments’ (Shaw, 11). One example of the mandate “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.’ This “Golden Rule’ is found in several of the religions in the world, including Hinduism, Judaism, Christianity, Buddhism, Confucianism, and Islam) representing one of humankind’s highest moral ideals. As I believe your ethics can be shaped from many these ways, I also believe it is ultimately your decision to choose which morals you want to carry with you.

An ethical stance is when a person takes a position on a topic based on defined ethical principles as determined acceptable by the person. A person keeps their ethical stance because their morals may be so strong they feel the need to take action on what they believe is the right thing to do.