Principle #3: Respect Others (Part 1)

Keeping secrets and telling the truth are two basics when it comes to being a good friend and associate, but they’re not always easy to do.

Principle Number 3 – Respect Others (Part 1).mp3

We continue with our exploration of the five fundamental ethical or “life” principles that provide the foundation for doing the right thing. When followed consistently, these principles bring out the best in us and in others. As I’m taking great pains to emphasize, however, the reason to take ethics seriously is simply because it’s the right thing to do. Professional and personal gains are a nice consequence of ethical behavior, but they aren’t the justification. [Read more...]

Is It Still Cheating If You Don’t Get Caught?

This article appears in the current issue of “Imagine” magazine, published by the Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Talented Youth.  It is a reworking of a portion of my book, Is It Still Cheating If I Don’t Get Caught?

Dear Dr. Weinstein,

During a test, I saw a girl copying off of the person next to her. She saw that I had seen her, and after class, asked me not to tell. She said she’d never cheated before and that she was going through a difficult time at home. Her parents were getting a divorce, and she hadn’t been able to concentrate on her homework. She promised she wouldn’t do it again. [Read more...]

Five Questions for: Fox TV’s Rosanna Scotto

 “Five Questions for….” In the future, I’ll be asking a wide range of people the same five questions about ethics, and I’ll post their answers here with little or no editing. 

For this inaugural edition of “Five Questions for….,” I’m delighted to present the perspective of Ms. Rosanna Scotto, co-host of Good Day New York on WNYW/ Fox 5.   [Read more...]

Should an Ethics Author Help a Student Cheat?

What are the major internal and external conflicts in the book “Is it still cheating If I don’t Get Caught?

Yesterday I received a question through this website from someone identifying herself as “Jasmine”.  Here is the response I sent her:  [Read more...]

Too Much Michael

The News Media and Michael Jackson

It’s not a shame that the news media are devoting so much attention to the Michael Jackson story.

It’s unethical.

Here’s why. [Read more...]

“Friend” me on Facebook and Follow me on Twitter!

Look for me on both Facebook and Twitter

My Facebook page is www.Facebook.com/TheEthicsGuy.com.

On Twitter I’m @TheEthicsGuy

I look forward to sharing my posts and tweets with you!

Spring Cleaning?

Spring, a good time for change.

We’re on the cusp of spring, and that means throwing out the old to make room for the new. [Read more...]

“Millionaire Matchmaker” Meets The Ethics Guy

I continued my public discussion of ethics during an interview with Patti Stanger.

Yesterday I interviewed Patti Stanger, star of Bravo TV’s “Millionaire Matchmaker” and co-author of the new book, “Become Your Own Matchmaker” (Atria, 2009)  for over an hour.  We discussed a range of ethical issues in business and dating, and I will submit an edited version of our interview to a major publication.  [Read more...]

Kirkus Reviews IS IT STILL CHEATING IF I DON’T GET CAUGHT?

Wow!  Imagine my surprise and delight when I received an e-mail today from my editor at Macmillan/Roaring Brook Press that contained the following new review of my forthcoming book about ethics for young adults, “Is It Still Cheating If I Don’t Get Caught?”:

Weinstein, a professional ethicist who writes a syndicated column as The Ethics Guy®, offers an accessible guide to living an ethical life and sound, practical advice for applying ethical principles in a variety of scenarios. Following a concise introduction to the origins of the concepts of ethics and morality, Weinstein addresses three myths about ethics. He uses the example of Rosa Parks to illustrate the ethical myth of “if it’s legal, it’s right.” The two other myths are “if everybody’s doing it, it must be right,” and “if it feels right, it is right.” The author suggests adopting five ethical principles to serve as guidelines for doing the right thing: do no harm; make things better; respect others; be fair; be loving. After elaborating on the meaning of each of these “Life Principles,” he illustrates applications in situations involving such issues as cheating, plagiarism, dating, lying to parents and friends, online social networking, peer pressure and shoplifting. This appealing guide speaks to the ethical dilemmas that all young people experience in their daily lives, and it should prompt considerable conversation and reflection. (Nonfiction. 10-14) [Read more...]

Too Generous ?

A letter to the Ethics Guy shows us how to be ethical in business.

Dear Ethics Guy:

I run a bed-and-breakfast and am fairly new to the hospitality industry. Recently a guest checked in for three days and left early on the last morning. He wrote to me when he got home and said that he was quite upset that we did not have breakfast available for him on his departure day. Apparently one of my employees told him that he could dine anytime between 6 a.m. and 12 noon, so he assumed that he could grab a meal before his early flight out. However, we do not begin serving until 7 a.m., so it was not possible to meet my guest’s needs on his last day with us. I decided to make an unfortunate situation better by refunding him a full night’s fee. My husband thinks that I should have simply given him back the cost of the breakfast. He says that being too generous is just as bad as not being generous enough. What do you think? [Read more...]