CEFE has long been transfixed with the idea that a lot of well meaning folks talk about
ethics in business, education or what-have-you but few really practice it with a passion. During the past ten years the Center
for Ethics in Free Enterprise Fellows and researchers have rarely seen much effort made to ignite ethical behavior and accountability in business, government, or education. Mostly,
there has been a lot of lip service. There was, is, and continues to be, plenty of talk to go around.
CEO's, professional
practitioners, academics, and executives has studied over the years in business, government, education and the non-profit
sector talk about ethics incessantly; how they believe in it, how their organizations choose to live it; and how they want
to train their management and staff employees in ethics and character development. Unfortunately, precious few have proven
to actually live the talk or walk the walk.
Most
Americans and much of the world have witnessed first hand ethical breeches in public faith of unimaginable proportions. These
breeches did not come from those who 'didn't know they didn't know.' Rather, they came from organizations and the individuals
who lead them who 'did know and didn't.' In recent years ethical crises have spread like wildfire. Those in higher
education, business, science, the professions, government, and even the alleged esteemed 'fourth estate', the press and media,
have fallen prey and into the pit of mind-numbing ethical excess and public betrayal.
