The High Cost of Corruption
Corruption has many faces. It could be a bribe for a construction contract, funds exchanged for political favor, an unskilled friend hired for a high-level job, etc.
The consequences are many, but at the end of the day, corruption hurts us all.
What determines our ethical roadmap? At its core is a strong sense of individual responsibility, character and discipline. Citizenship and contribution may also play a role if viewed through the lens of service.
I see two issues splitting society down the ethical middle. First, is the unrelenting intrusion of advertising and entertainment with its skewed emphasis on personal gain. Second, is the appalling lack of role models our youth so desperately need. Role models who demonstrate modesty and humility vs. the sordid side of winner-takes-all.
Not that far into the distant past, we did a better job of instilling ethics early on by apprenticing our young. I believe we would do well to consider reinstating that cultural practice in order to help young people create their own framework rather than having it dictated by the media.
Continuing that thought, it might be good to remember that as we live by example, so must we act. When was the last time you spoke at a local school on career day? Or hired an at-risk youth? There is no one solution, but we can each do our part to help re-shape the messages that have cost us so much.
