Trickle-Up Ethics (1993)

/ Trickle-Up Ethics (1993)

Article

1993

Trickle-Up Ethics (1993)

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Outline

Campus Conversations: Ethical Dilemas on a University Campus (1999)

Your classmate tells you that she “obtained” a copy of a very difficult final (i.e., Organic Chemistry) and she is willing to share – do you report her? make a copy of the final for yourself? just ignore the offer? You find that throughout the past few weeks, money has been “disappearing” from your wallet. Your roommate suddenly has a lot of spending cash at her disposal – every time that you leave her alone in the room, you find that money is missing – should you confront her about it? speak to a resident assistant or the residence supervisor? You find that when you talk to your professor about schoolwork, he begins to discuss other students and faculty members. He tells you the marks of other students from tests and comments about their papers. During the course of conversation, he mentions that he has a personal aversion to a particular student – despite the fact that she is an A student, he will lower her grade. Do you report him to the academic dean? Tell the student? Talk to the faculty member directly about his conduct? You are standing in the lobby and your friend has just told you a racist joke – while laughing, you realize that a security guard has been behind you the whole time and has overheard the conversation – do you apologize? Avoid the guard from now on? Is the above an example of chilul Hashem?

Character Development

Note

Philanthropy; Being Deceived for a Good Cause

Representative "Tip" O’Neill, former Speaker of the House, tells (at Hanukkah Dinner 1986) that in the 1950s he was invited to visit Ireland, his ancestral home, for the first time. In Cork, they showed him around town to all the famous historic places. Then they pointed with pride to the hospital. He asked why a hospital was so special – after all, every city has one. They told him the story of how it was built: Years before, Henry Ford had also paid his first visit to Ireland, his ancestral home. In Cork, a delegation came to his hotel room and asked him for a contribution to build a hospital. He gave them a check for $5,000. The next day the Daily Express ran a headline, “Henry Ford contributes $50,000 to hospital.” They then came to visit him the next day, and he was terribly upset. They apologized for the mistake, and said they were quite willing to have the Daily Express run a retraction the next day and say that he only gave $5,000 – whereupon, he asked for the $5,000 check back, tore it up, and gave them a $50,000 check on one condition only: that they engrave the following legend over the entrance of the hospital – “I came amongst you, and you took me in – Henry Ford.”

Correspondence

Letter from Matthew Maryles about "Some Thoughts on Leadership" (1998)

Dear Dr. Lamm: Your address, “Some Thoughts on Leadership,” was extraordinary. I know that sometimes you feel like a lonely voice in the wilderness, but be assured that there are many who enthusiastically support your ideological thrust and personal leadership and are ready to man the rafters with you. I wish you continued hatzlacha in all your endeavors. Warm regards from Gladys and to Mindy. MJM/jm.