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Floyd's Opinion
Business EthicsThis letter was sent to the editor, but has not made it to the editorial page, yet. July 9, 2002
Richmond Times-Dispatch Dear Sir, Greetings, good sir. I am writing to voice my opinion on a matter that is currently in the news. Having owned two businesses in my lifetime I feel I am qualified to comment on the topic of business ethics. With Enron and WorldCom making many headlines because of the unethical practices of their leaders I am compelled to point out the problems, beyond the obvious, that this creates. Obviously there are investors and employees who will suffer because of the collapse of these businesses. It is equally obvious that there was criminal negligence, at best, going on here. Further, it goes without saying that those responsible for this debacle must be held accountable and suffer as any other criminal would. There should be no breaks given these thieves just because they are "white-collar" criminals. My concern comes from my firm belief in a free market, unencumbered by stifling federal regulations. I now fear that the government is going to step in and further regulate businesses because of a few bad apples. As a believer in true free markets I abhor the thought of government regulation over private businesses. However, there are many Americans who will welcome this intervention as the only means of stopping such unethical behavior among businessmen. I would ask those Americans to take a look at the Social Security Fund, Medicare, Medicaid, pork barrel spending, and any other program where the government spends our tax dollars. Can we expect the same outrage from our government regulators and our citizenry toward these bureaucracies? To the businessmen out there, reading this, I would ask, "Do you want further government regulation or would you like to get government out of private business?" Because each time an Enron or WorldCom happens there are those who will use these occurrences as an excuse for further government intrusion. If you wish to get government out of private business then clean up your own house. If there is no corruption then you give the government no excuse for intervening. Ethical behavior is it’s own reward. People do notice and will respond favorably, with their money. But rest assured that these same people will cheer on government intrusion if they see this as the only way to "keep you honest". The sad fact is that the government has it’s own ethical problems which need fixing. But who oversees them? Sincerely, Floyd C. Bayne
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